A Silver Locket
by California smells funny
Summary: AU: In a California high school, Harry Potter befriends new boy Draco. But when he finds out Draco's secret, there's no going back. HPDM, no likey no readey.
1. The New Guy

**Chapter 1**

Author's Note: This is my second fanfic, but only my first shot at using the non-magic world as a setting. Also, I'm English born and bred, so my knowledge of American life is a little, er, shaky, so bear with me.

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"Same crap, new year," Harry Potter muttered irritably, staring into the mirror at his scruffy black hair, which as always refused to lie flat. Bugger. It was September 7th, the first day of another school year. It wasn't his favourite time of year. Judging from the crashing coming from down the corridor, his younger sister wasn't too delighted either. It was funny; she was famously smart, but hated school with a passion.

"Harry! Debbie!" Harry turned away from the mirror as he heard his mother Lily yelling from downstairs. "If you guys want breakfast that isn't stone cold, get down here NOW!"

Reluctantly, Harry abandoned his endeavours with his hair, and went downstairs. He wasn't surprised to see he'd beaten Debbie to it; his sister usually needed yelling at several times before she did as she was told. He sat down and started on his breakfast.

Several minutes later, Lily was losing patience. "Harry, will you get your sister down here please?"

Harry stood up and went to the foot of the stairs. "Debbie, your breakfast's getting cold!" There was a pause. "Get your ass down here!"

"Harry!" His mother reprimanded him as he sat back down at the kitchen table. "Language, please..."

"It works, though, doesn't it mom?" Harry grinned as he heard Debbie coming down the stairs.

The Potter siblings had mixed feelings towards each other. At times, they bugged the hell out of each other. They had a strong siblingly bond, but sometimes California just wasn't big enough for the both of them. It was a shame, Harry contemplated, that they had to attend the same school. Minster High was, fortunately, big enough to contain both of them while avoiding close proximity, but they had to travel in the same car.

And this was exactly what they found themselves doing half an hour later. Debbie was mercifully quiet for once, and Harry found time to think about seeing his friends again. Now starting their sophomore (_is that right?) _year, he, Ron and 'Mione had been friends since kindergarten. That was, he calculated with the speed of a tortoise on sedatives, 11 years. Yeah, they'd met when they were 4 or 5, and now they were 15. He'd seen them both over summer break, but 'Mione had been in Tahoe for the last week, skiing. And there were other people he would shortly be seeing again. Melfin for instance... he cringed. He wasn't looking forward to seeing _her_ again. Melfin was a girl in his class who he had been dating up until a few weeks ago, when he'd broken up with her. She was bloody strong willed. She hadn't liked letting go, and seeing her made Harry want to flee the country, but he'd known her since kindergarten so he had to make some sort of effort to remain on peaceful terms with her. Oh well. Take the bad with the good.

When Harry arrived, he went straight to his homeroom, on the second floor of the main building. He entered to find both his friends already there. 'Mione had shocking panda eyes from a week of ski goggles, and Ron's hair was redder than ever due to the sun. They spent a long time talking; it wasn't long since they'd seen each other last, but they could always find something to talk about.

Harry and Ron couldn't help noticing that several of the guys in the class were eying up 'Mione; she had grown up quite a lot over the summer vacation. She was wearing a shortish skirt she wouldn't have dreamed of wearing last semester, and a tight red T-shirt with 'Heavenly' written across it in silver. The two boys had done a bit of a double-take at this before realising it was the name of the ski resort she'd been to. Harry smiled to himself as he noticed Ron's none-too-subtle efforts to make it clear that 'Mione was his. The two of them were a close couple, and 'Mione would never have given any other guy a second look, but Ron could get jealous at the drop of a hat. At times, their closeness bugged Harry; he spent a lot of the time feeling like the metaphorical third wheel.

Eventually their chat was broken off as their homeroom teacher swept in. Ms McGonagall was one of the best teachers in Minster High for making dramatic entrances. The best was, of course, Snape, the evil Chemistry teacher. This morning though, their attention was diverted to the person who entered behind her.

The boy was about 5' 10" and slender. He had straight blond hair that fell into his grey eyes, and looked a little apprehensive. He looked painfully conscious of the fact he was on show; the whole class was sizing him up. He looked OK actually, not too bizarre, not too boring. He was wearing pale jeans, scuffed sneakers and a black T-shirt.

"We have a new student this year," Ms McGonagall explained briskly. "I'll allow him to introduce himself."

The boy looked as if he wanted the ground to open and swallow him. "Um, hi... My name's Draco Malfoy. I just moved from Connecticut with my mom 'cos of... just because. My dad lives in Canada." He shuffled slightly awkwardly. "So, that's me." He looked at the floor.

Ms McGonagall then saw fit to release him. "Mr Malfoy, take a seat..." She looked around the room, her eyes eventually lighting on the spare seat next to Harry. "Over there please, next to Mr Potter." Harry smiled encouragingly as Draco came over and sat down. Ms McGonagall then took roll call and handed out timetables. The students quickly started to talk among themselves.

Harry turned to his new neighbour. "Hi, I'm Harry." He held out his hand and the blond boy shook it. "And this is Ron next to me, and 'Mione. So, why did you say you moved here again?"

Draco smiled slightly. "I didn't. Um, I had some problems at my school in Connecticut, and then my mom and dad split up..."

"Sorry." Harry said quickly. "Nosy question."

Draco smiled a genuine smile. "It's OK. Hey, what lesson do you have first thing?"

Harry looked down at his timetable. "Geography with Mr Lupin. You?"

Draco looked at his own timetable. "Same! OK if I walk with you?"

"Yeah, sure. I think 'Mione and Ron have got that lesson next too, right guys?" He spoke to his friends as they both manoeuvred their chairs round to make conversation easier.

They both nodded.

The day passed reasonably uneventfully. Harry was pleased to see he didn't have Chemistry till Friday (today being Tuesday), and it transpired that Draco was in all his classes. Melfin spoke to him at lunch, but it wasn't an in-depth conversation. She seemed as reluctant to bring up their break-up as Harry was.

At 3.30, Harry and Draco walked out of the gates together.

"You waiting for your lift?" Harry asked.

"Yep. I'm guessing you are too." This received a nod from Harry. "I never did finish telling you why I moved, did I?"

"You don't have to," Harry interjected quickly. Inwardly though, he was curious.

Draco smiled at him. "I'll give you the edited highlights. Some bozos at my old school – Wilton High, near Hartford - found something out about me and started spreading it. They even put it on the school's unofficial website, I think it's still in the archives, and things got kind of unpleasant. And my mom and dad had just split, so we came here. My mom got a job in Minster and my dad moved to Quebec. That's basically it."

That evening, Harry was in his room, seriously bored, when he remembered what Draco had said about the website. If it was archived, it would still be on there... He didn't want to betray Draco's confidence, but he couldn't help wanting to look. Before he had time for second thoughts, he switched on his computer, logged onto the internet and started looking for the site. It didn't take him long to find it, and he began looking through the Archive section. This part took longer. More pages, more gossip... It had to be here somewhere-

"James! Harry! Debbie! Dinner's ready!" Harry's thoughts were interrupted again by Lily's voice from downstairs.

"Coming mom!" He switched off the computer, already feeling guilty. He shouldn't have done that, and he wouldn't try it again.

"Harry, can I use your computer please?" Debbie asked him after dinner. "I have homework to do, and I need to use the net."

"OK," he agreed. He could stay downstairs and watch TV for a bit. Granted, he'd left the website address on his Favourites list, but his sister wasn't _that _nosy. He had his mother's flair for nosiness; Debbie took more after James.

_A/N: R & R! Cookies for those who do! Hope you like, and please feedback: how's my American stuff? Draco is totally OOC by the way, but it's a parallel universe, I can do what I want. Do you want Debbie to find out Draco's secret? (I think she will anyway, but do you guys want to know yet?) _


	2. Double DoubleTake

**Chapter 2**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting,_ _plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N: Oopsy, forgot the disclaimer last time, shame on me (looks downcast). Anyways, thank you for the reviews, they made me happy. And for future reference, I have decided that any future flames will be used to roast my English teacher, who I don't like all that much. _

_Paddycake Padfoot: So LA smells too? I was thinking more San Francisco, I think it's all the seafood that does it. Your name is cool too; it reminds me of my friend, who's slightly mad but very fun to be around._

_lampshadesrgreat: Where did you think of that name? Everyone seems to like AU these days (I include myself in that)._

_shadow-seraph: Out of interest, do you know why your review got posted five times? And thanks for telling me about the anonymous reviews, I didn't realise and I've fixed it now._

_Cherry0214: Harry's life will suck slightly later on. I think. I find making my characters too happy in a story ultimately makes me hate them, after which I usually find a quick and thorough way of wrecking their life!_

_Anegativegrl: Maybe that's Draco's secret. Maybe it isn't. Wait and see! Your confidence is most reassuring, and I'll do my best to keep updating. I have another fic going (Harry Potter and the Stars of Silver) at the same time, but I'm way ahead of myself on that, so I can just keep posting all the chapters I've already written and focus on this._

_madam-malicia: Thanks for the reassurance. Please tell me when I do make a mistake as I'm kind of clueless on America!_

_Thank you all, cookies! (::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::) That's one each._

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By the end of the week, it felt to Harry as if he and Draco had been friends for years. Draco had fitted right in and seemed quite at ease at Minster, and everyone had happily accepted him.

So it was that, last thing on Friday, Draco, Harry, Ron and 'Mione were all walking together down the lengthy flight of stairs that led them towards their first lesson of the year with the delightful Mr Snape.

"And don't speak unless you're spoken to," Harry said in a low voice, continuing the stream of advice they had been giving Draco on how to cope with Snape.

"Always do the homework," Ron added, "or he'll kill you."

'Mione gave him a withering look. "Some of us do homework anyway, Ron. Generally speaking it is the shrewd thing to do."

Ron shuffled uncomfortably. "I just mean that if you haven't done your homework for Snape's lesson, it's best to go to the sick bay for the rest of the day rather than trying to come up with an excuse."

'Mione sighed exasperatedly and muttered something reproachful about skiving. Ron was starting to look a little annoyed at her constant reprimands, but fortunately they reached the lab at this point, and entered.

They sat at the back, glad they were early. The back row was the most coveted place to sit in Snape's lessons, on the grounds that the further you sat away from him, the less likely he was to pick on you. As the class filtered in, they were joined by Melfin and, after a scuffle over the last two seats, Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan from their homeroom class.

Five minutes later, Snape swept in. He placed a pile of books on his desk and began taking attendance.

"Marisa Andrews."

"Yes sir."

"Susan Bones."

"Yes sir."

And so it went on, through the Cs and Ds, until...

"Melanie Findorran."

"Yes sir, but please may I be called Melfin?" The class fell still and silent as the grave. Only Melfin would dare to ask a question. She sat defiantly on the end of the back row, looking straight at Snape.

His face betrayed no anger, simply a look of boredom and mild contempt. He ignored her question, ticked her name on the list and carried on as before.

Roll call was followed by his customary 'welcome to the year and if you blow up the lab your lives will not be worth a prayer' speech. After that, textbooks and paper were handed out, and the class were forced to copy out a long and boring explanation of the useful and non-useful properties of acids.

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Despite it only being their first lesson, Snape gave them a pile of homework, which Harry was contemplating that evening when the phone rang shrilly. He ignored it completely and didn't move from his comfortable position (sprawled on his back on his bed) either to get his books or do anything else. A minute later though, his bored dozing was interrupted when his mother entered his room. Harry sat up; Lily never came into his room without knocking.

"What's up mom?"

Lily ran a hand through her dark red hair, looking concerned. "It's Sirius."

"What?" Harry sat up straighter at the mention of his godfather's name by his flustered looking mother, who was usually so calm. "What is it?"

"He... oh, God, well you know he was doing a jump today?"

Harry nodded. Sirius had a legendary love of parachuting, never listening to anyone trying to tell him how dangerous it was.

Lily bit her lip. "Well, he had an accident. That was the hospital..." She trailed off, looking like she was about to cry. She sat down on the edge of Harry's bed and he put his arm round her shoulders. Sirius was his parents' closest friend; he was the one who had set them up in the first place. He could understand why she was so upset.

"How- how is he?"

"He's not too good, but he's conscious – he asked them to call us. They say he can have visitors tomorrow, and I can't even go! I can't let Debbie down, she's got that girls' basketball match tomorrow morning and your dad and I have to go..."

"Yeah, but you can make it to the hospital in the afternoon, right?" Harry asked gently. "And you can take Debbie with you then. I'll go in the morning if you want. I can get a bus over there."

"Would you, honey?" Lily looked at him gratefully. "That'd be great, he'd be really glad to see you."

"No problem," Harry answered, smiling reassuringly. "Now go tell dad and Deb."

As soon as Lily left the room, closing the door behind her, he glanced at his watch and stood up. He walked across his room and took his cell phone out of his school bag, before sitting back down and quickly dialling Draco's number.

After about four rings, Draco picked up. "Harry? Why are you ringing my cell? Is everything OK?"

"Yeah, kind of. It's just... my godfather had an accident today-"

"Oh my God! Is he OK?"

"Well, that's the thing. He's in hospital, and I promised my mom I'd go tomorrow morning, but I really hate hospitals..."

"Want me to come with you?"

"Would you?"

"Yeah sure, if you want the company. Do you?"

"Yeah, that'd be great, thanks Draco."

"No prob. You getting a bus over?"

"Yeah, though I would."

"OK. There's a stop like right near my house. If you can get over here then we can catch one to the hospital?"

"Mm-hm. Is it OK if I get a lift over to yours about ten? Just that my mom and dad're taking Debbie to this basketball match she's playing in tomorrow morning."

"Yeah, that's fine. See you about ten then. You know the way here, don't you?"

"Yep, it's 52 Maple Avenue, right?"

"Yep. See you tomorrow morning."

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Harry arrived at Draco's house at five to ten on Saturday, and was let in by Draco's mother. She was blonde like her son, and had the same intelligent look. She introduced herself as Izzy, and told Harry to go straight up as Draco was nearly ready.

Harry climbed the stairs and followed Izzy's directions to the last room on the landing. He knocked twice and waited.

"Come in!" Draco's voice floated through from the room. Harry opened the door and stepped in.

Draco's room was shockingly tidy. Everything looked organised and neat. Draco himself was standing in the middle of the room, and he turned as Harry went in. "Hi." His hair was damp and was flopping into his eyes. He was wearing black cords and a Green Day T-shirt, and as he spoke he stepped into a pair of sneakers, then grabbed a grey hoodie off the back of a chair and tied it round his waist. "So you've met my mom, then."

Harry nodded. "She seemed nice."

Draco smiled, clearly pleased with this comment. "Yeah, she's great. So, let's go shall we?"

They arrived at the hospital at half past ten, and found Reception. Harry spoke to the receptionist.

"Um, hi. I'm here to see Sirius Black. He was brought in yesterday, parachuting incident."

She tapped a few words into the computer. "Oh, yes. Are you family?"

"No, I'm his godson. My name's Harry. You called my parents last night, he asked for us."

She nodded. "OK. Ward 6C, along that corridor there, take the second left and follow the signs."

Harry thanked her and he and Draco set off.

Ward 6C was quite easy to find, and it wasn't long before Harry found himself face-to-face with one of the nurses. He introduced himself again. The nurse smiled.

"Oh yes, he's been asking for you. He already has a visitor-" she lowered her voice "-his sweetheart in fact. He's been talking about it all morning. Just go straight in, he's in the fourth bed on the right."

Harry thanked her and stepped into the ward, closely followed by Draco. He found the bed, and saw with relief that Sirius didn't look too badly hurt. He couldn't see the visitor's face, as their back was to him. Then the visitor turned around and nearly fell off their chair at the sight of the two boys. For their part, Harry and Draco both stared, amazed, at the familiar face of Sirius's 'sweetheart'.

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_A/N: Mwahaha! I hope this counts as a cliffie and it's not majorly obvious what – or rather who – is going on here. Remember, cookies are on offer! I beg of you, if you read this please review! And I've just realised I have a source of Americanisms – my English teacher happens to be from Iowa._


	3. Sweetheart

**Chapter 3**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N: Thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews! The next chappie could be a while as my brain's a bit freaked at the mo. I'm really mad as I just got dumped for no apparent reason, and I read this fic the other night that just totally sent my head round the twist. Guess I shouldn't have read it. But don't worry, there will be more soon (if you review, hint hint!) And I wrote this chapter before this stuff happened, so it should be reasonably normal. Or as normal as anything I write ever is :-)_

_Anegativegrl: On both of your questions, just keep reading. You may be pleasantly surprised. Trust in the faith._

_oracle: Well the answer to the sweetheart question is revealed in this chapter! I think non-magic stuff is actually way easier than magic, but that's just me, I'm crazy..._

_Lucky Dragon Smile: You think Debbie didn't find out? Just because I didn't write it doesn't mean it never happened... _

_PaddycakePadfoot: That therapy thing is indisputably crazy. And what do you mean by clichéd? If I know then I can carry on avoiding it. Thanks!_

_sparkling silver angel wings: I read your bio, and you are... weird but cool. Do you prefer to be referred to as one entity or a group? Just out of interest. Read this chapter to find out whether it's Snape or not! And there might be a kiss soon. Maybe. _

_Cherry0214: Well you haven't had to wait too long, have you? Glad to hear I actually achieved a cliffhanger. _

_The Earth Mystic: Thank you for your confidence in my story. And you're about to find out who the 'sweetheart' is. ._

_Shadow-Seraph: Don't worry about the five review thing, not your fault. Strictly speaking, it was your computer's fault. My philosophy is 'If in doubt, blame technology'. Ha ha. _

_Lady Nicole Malfoy-Potter: Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. Read on to find out! _

_Thank you all again. Cookies! (::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)_

_Also, thank you to anyone reading this who has put me on their Author Alert list. I've seen the list of you and it made me so happy! If you're reading this still, please please review! _

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As he noticed his godson standing in mute shock by the bed, Sirius's face underwent several different emotions. First surprise, then happiness, realisation, fear and, finally, resignation. He swallowed slowly and spoke, his voice slightly hoarse and noticeably nervous. "Hi Harry. Um, bad timing but I guess you had to find out sooner or later... This is my, um, my boyfriend. I know it's a shock, and I'm real sorry. Honey, this is Harry, my godson..."

"We've met." Harry and the 'stranger' spoke at the same time.

Sirius looked confused. The other man turned to him and spoke. "You know I said I worked in education, Sirius?"

Sirius nodded, the penny still not quite having dropped in his brain.

"Well, at the moment I happen to be working in Harry's education."

Sirius's expression finally turned to understanding and mild amusement.

"Yes, so you can kind of see why this is just a little bit weird," Harry croaked, breaking his silence at last. "Oh my God, my godfather is dating one of my teachers..."

"Geography teacher, to be precise," said the aforementioned teacher with a weak smile. "You may think this is weird, Harry, but put it this way. You have to deal with the weirdness, whereas I... I could be in deep, _deep _trouble if you tell anyone about this. Generally I think teachers are supposed to be... how shall I put this? Of the majority persuasion. So much for forward thinking..."

Harry looked at him in surprise. "I wouldn't dream of telling anyone! Neither of us would!" He glanced at Draco, who added: "No way."

Lupin suddenly noticed that Draco was there too, and uttered a very un-teacherly curse. "Oops, I hope none of the nurses heard that."

Harry stifled a laugh, as did Draco. This latest development had put Lupin on more of a friendly level, rather than a teacherly one.

Lupin smiled back, still looking immensely nervous. Then he turned back to the bed. "I've got to go Sirius, sorry I can't stay longer."

Harry deliberately averted his eyes as Lupin kissed Sirius goodbye. He was cool with this, but not _that _cool.

He and Draco stayed a while longer, chatting to Sirius about things non-Remus related. Then Sirius started to look tired, so they said their goodbyes and left him to rest.

"So, what are we going to do now?" Draco asked as they left the hospital.

"We could walk down into town - waste some time, and have lunch somewhere, if you've got nothing better to do," Harry suggested.

"OK, sounds good."

So they did, and in the most private booth of Ryan's Café, they had lunch and discussed the day's events. Or rather, the day's event.

"Teachers have lives too, I guess," Harry concluded as he took his last bite of chocolate brownie, about half an hour later.

"Yeah," Draco agreed. "It's just a bit strange when their lives happen to overlap with ours."

Twenty minutes later, they still hadn't left, and were seemingly trying to test how long they could make their coffees last, as their conversation changed tack.

"So, have you thought any more about the party?" Draco asked, referring to the party Harry was planning in three weeks time. His parents were going away for the weekend, and he was offloading Debbie on her friend to clear the way for the party of the year. "Guest list?"

Harry shrugged. "Everyone in homeroom except Crabbe and Goyle" (the two biggest losers in homeroom S3) "and some others. Mostly sophs, nobody older than Juniors, nobody younger than Freshmen. Funny how many people become your friends as soon as there's a party in the offing..."

"Oh, that's bullshit and you know it is, Harry. People like you, or have you not noticed how many people wave at you or say hi when you're just walking around school?"

Harry frowned. "No, I hadn't."

Draco laughed. "So modest!"

Harry's mouth fell open in mock indignation, and he threw a sugar cube at his friend.

"Hey!" Draco yelped and threw one right back. The fight continued until the sugar bowl emptied, which wasn't long.

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_A/N: Sorry it's short. But I think I'm going to go straight on to the party, and I need a new chapter to tackle that. Keep reviewing! And incidentally, **not Snape**! I would never do that! The only person I think Snape really works with is Lupin himself, and only then in some fics (such as It's Just a Cold and It's Just a Question). I am definitely not a believer in the Snape/Draco theory, or Snape/Harry. I'm sorry if any of you guys are, but it just creeps me out SO MUCH! And I forgot to mention before that Debbie is me! Yes, my name is Debbie Potter and you would not believe how many times people have asked me if I have a brother called Harry._


	4. I Would Like A Ping Pong Ball

**Chapter 4 **

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N: Hi everyone! It's Sunday, and it's that time again when I sit down to 'bond' with my computer. I know it's not so long since the last update, and some of you may not have had time to review chapter 3 before I post this, but that last one didn't quite feel like a proper chapter, so I had to carry on. And I'm on holiday next weekend so there probably won't be any chapter 5 till at least Monday October25th. But then it's half term so I have a whole school-free week to write more for you lovely people! _

_sparkling silver angel wings: You are insane. Well, here is the update, as requested. (::) _

_Immortal Tears of: Glad to hear you like it! (::)_

_madam-malicia: Nah, sorry, no one in their right mind would date normal Snape, and OoC Snape just doesn't work for me. (::)_

_CloverRock: Never Snape. Lupin all the way! And AU really does rock, doesn't it? (::)_

_Cherry0214: And I LOVE you! Thank you so much for saying that, it made me really happy. (::)_

_lampshadesrgreat: Thanks, glad to hear my humble fic is spreading the love. (::)_

_The Earth Mystic: Here is the party chapter! And (whispers) he might just find out Draco's secret next chapter! (::)_

_So here it is, chapter 4, the crazy party bit. The PG-13 rating now comes into play due to slash, swearing (maybe) and scenes of an extremely alcoholic nature. Enjoy!_

_Recap: Harry deliberately averted his eyes as Lupin kissed Sirius goodbye. He was cool with this, but not that cool. _

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The party rolled round quickly. Before Harry knew it, it was the morning of Saturday October 2nd, and his parents were driving off, leaving him and Debbie to their own devices for the weekend. Deb hadn't been too happy about Harry getting rid of her to make way for the party, but she'd got over it on the proviso that he lent her five CDs and two DVDs to take to her friend's house for their sleepover that night.

As soon as Lily and James drove off, the party plan came into action. It didn't start till seven, but in the time between now and then Harry had to get rid of his sister, party-proof the house and generally get ready. Ron, Mione and Draco were coming round at twelve to help. Deb's friend Nadine and her mom were coming to pick her up at one. And Ron's two eldest brothers were bringing the drinks over at five (as they were the only people they knew who were old enough to buy alcohol and who were also prepared to hand it over to a group of fifteen year olds). They were staying for the party, along with Ron's twin brothers and their friend Lee, who were Seniors. Harry had been reluctant to have them all there, but had come round to the idea; they were prepared to not drink, make calls if anyone needing picking up early, and generally lend a hand and mature authority if things got rough. Besides that, it was Bill and Charlie's only condition in return for bringing drinks (even if it was Harry and co. paying).

The day passed rapidly. Twelve o' clock came and went, bringing with it Mione, Ron and Draco. The five of them had lunch, then Deb's lift arrived and preparations began in earnest. Rooms and cupboards were locked. Those that couldn't be locked were masking-taped shut. This included the dishwasher, microwave, washing machine, drier and anywhere that could be seen as a handy place to be sick. Harry had constructed a Rolodex of everyone's home phone numbers in case they had to leave early, which was placed in the spare room they were using for coats. Ron and Mione started the fun task of clearing the bathroom cupboards while Draco and Harry did a run-through of everything that needed doing.

"Cupboards?" Draco asked first, leaning on a kitchen counter.

"Locked, taped or cleared," Harry replied, sinking onto a kitchen chair.

"Upstairs rooms?"

"Locked, except the spare we're using for coats and the two bathrooms we're using."

"Plug sockets?"

"What?" Harry gave him a very funny look. "What about them?"

Draco sighed. "Are they all switched off?"

Harry shrugged. "Should they be?"

Draco rolled his eyes expressively. "Houseful of tipsy teenagers, and electricity? Good combination? I think not. They should all be switched off."

"But people can just switch them back on," Harry pointed out, stating what he thought was kind of obvious.

Draco smiled. "Au contraire, my friend. When you're drunk, you usually don't feel like crawling around looking for a switch that's a few inches off the floor. Capisce?"

Harry's eyes widened. "Olé. How many foreignisms did you use in that little speech?"

The blond glared back at him. "Ha ha. Now go switch off some sockets."

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By six o' clock, the house was ready. Ron's brothers were setting out drinks downstairs, and the four party planners were getting ready. Mione had commandeered a bathroom straight away, and no one knew how long she was planning on spending in there. The three guys disbanded to separate rooms, and an unspecified amount of time passed as they all got themselves ready.

Then it was seven. People started arriving in dribs and drabs, steadily filling the downstairs rooms. Harry started off the stereo, playing a rock compilation, and directed people to the drinks (non-alcoholic options included, though barely anyone went for those). People started talking, dancing, admiring each other's outfits and, in some cases, each other.

At ten past, Harry's least favourite guest turned up.

"Melfin!" He said in a fake cheery voice as he took in what she was – or rather, wasn't – wearing. A tiny halter neck top and the shortest skirt ever made.

"Hi, Harry," she smiled, batting her eyelashes as she spoke. Harry felt a strong urge to retch. She still liked him! God, was he going to have to act totally repulsive before she'd give up on him?

"Melfin!" Harry nearly fainted with relief as he heard another voice behind him in the hallway, and turned to see Draco with a drink in his hand. "Hi! You look great tonight! Come in, have a drink..." As Melfin followed Draco towards the kitchen, Harry breathed again. Oh thank God, she was gone.

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Sadly, later on in the evening, Harry found himself alone with her again. It was getting on for ten o' clock, he hadn't drunk much yet, but he'd danced a damn lot, which more or less made up for the debilitating effects of the drinks he hadn't had. He was in the living room, having just put another CD on, and Melfin sashayed up to him, clearly having had a few, or rather several, too many. "Harry!" She said delightedly. "Glad I found you, we didn't really get a chance to talk earlier, did we?"

Harry opened his mouth to say something in reply, but didn't get a chance as she immediately scrapped the idea of talking and kissed him. For a few seconds he was totally paralysed in the major 'aargh'ness of the moment. Then he was mercifully freed as Melfin fell backwards, detaching herself from him. He recognised the greenish colour of her face and caught her before she hit the floor. Then he picked her up (thank God she was so darn small) and carried her to the downstairs cloakroom. Not a moment too soon either.

"Nice, real nice," he muttered, holding her dark hair back while she was sick. "Melfin, sweetie, it's been great having you here tonight, but I'm going to get someone to call your parents to take you home, OK?" She was half-conscious and made no reply, so he helped her to a chair and asked the older ones to call her parents.

Fifteen minutes later, Melfin was on her way home, and Harry made his way back to the living room. He decided it was about time he had something stronger than a coke, and acted on this (several times, in fact) before going into the kitchen. He found it full of people. Ron, Mione and Draco were sitting along one side of the table, which was covered in disposable plastic shot glasses, most of which were full.

"Harry! At last!" Said a boy standing at one end of the table, whose name Harry couldn't actually remember. "Sit."

He did, pulling out the chair to Draco's left, and settling himself on it.

"Now," the boy at the end of the table began, "we are all here to see the ancient game of Drinking A Lot Of Shots. I am the master of drinking, and I'll be your host tonight." There was cheering and applause. Harry began to wonder how much they'd all had, and, for that matter, how much he'd had himself. "Ladies and gentlemen, the first shot if you please!"

Following his friends' lead, Harry picked up one of the cups. "One!" The 'master of drinking' began. "Two! Three!"

"SHOT!" The assembled spectators cried as one. The four seated did as they were ordered, and drank.

"Again! One! Two! Three! SHOT!"

And on it went. Harry quickly lost count of the number of shots, and Mione soon ran off to the bathroom to get a drink of water. Ron followed, leaving Harry and Draco at the table, surrounded but uncaring of that or anything else.

"I am so drunk I could do anything!" Draco declared gleefully.

"Me too!" Harry agreed happily.

"Anything, huh?" The master grinned.

Draco shrugged. "I dunno. I think that's what I said."

"Either that or 'I would like a ping pong ball'," Harry said helpfully.

"Hm. Anything..." The master said, grinning wickedly.

"Kiss!" Someone shouted from the back of the room.

"OK," Harry said simply. "Kiss who?"

"Yeah, who?" Draco added.

The master sighed. "Each other, dumb ass! Doy!"

Harry and Draco looked at each other and shrugged. They leant towards each other and kissed. It lasted only a second, and most of the room groaned. "Properly!" Someone yelled.

Minds still totally fuzzed from the shots and the party atmosphere, they obliged, leaning close again, but not pulling apart like before.

The music, cheering and catcalls all faded out of focus as Harry's mind drifted off into the brainless space of oblivion. This was weird. But oddly cool. It was like eating chocolate, he reflected, as warm sweetness spread over his tongue and he breathed deeply through his nose, drinking in the musky scent that surrounded him. He knew that they were both blind drunk, but this was different. This was touching something inside his head that was still clear as day; he knew exactly what he was doing. And he didn't pull away, tangling his fingers into Draco's hair as they both forgot that there was anyone else in the room.

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_A/N: What do you think? Too slashy? Not slashy enough? Review and tell me what you think! Next chappie will probably be up on the 25th or 26th. Aftermath of the party will be by turns funny, tragic and heart-rending. I think. When I hit the keyboard, things are bound to change._

_Sneak preview: "So Harry, you sure got lucky last night. I hear you managed to pull twice," Mione said flippantly as she got milk out of the fridge._

_"Yeah," Harry replied sheepishly, "but neither of them meant anything..." His face went red from lying, and he pretended to rummage in a cupboard for sugar._


	5. Coffee and Bath Towels

**Chapter 5**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N: So here I am again. It's only been nine days but God I've missed this. Holiday turned out to be fun, and I got loads of ideas._

_Anegativegrl: Yeah, Melfin is bloody annoying isn't she? That's how I want her to be! And by the way, if you hate angsty slash and prefer fluff, you may not want to read the next few chapters (like, several). But I've started thinking about a sequel already, so things won't be evil forever._

_sweetypud: Thanks honey, but try reading all chapters before reviewing! And by the way, if you tell anyone what I told you about future plotlines I will kill you (and you know me too well to think I'm joking) (Seriously, I am joking)_

_M'Lady: Thanks!_

_Immortal Tears of: Thank you!_

_trianglisch: Love your name! Personally I think sometimes slash can go overboard, but mostly it's all good. _

_Cherry0214: Yeah, I thought it could have been slashier, but I'm working on my slash-writing skills so there will be better later._

_The Earth Mystic: Thank you so much for the encouragement. Hope your party was good. And you might want to watch that drooling on keyboard thing... Generally water and keyboards don't mix all that well. _

_Thank you all! (::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)_

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On Sunday morning, Harry woke at about nine thirty, his head fuzzy and his mouth dry. As he woke up properly, he realised he was lying, fully clothed, on top of his bedclothes in his room (how had he got up the stairs?). Slow, steady breathing reached his ears, and he noticed Draco asleep on the floor. Harry sat up, his brain beginning to flood with memories from the night before. Melfin kissing him (and then being sick), dancing, and... oh shit. He'd kissed Draco.

Granted, he'd enjoyed it, but that had to be down to the booze, right? Right? They'd both been really really (really!) drunk. He wasn't attracted to Draco. He was his best friend for God's sake! Just because he'd started to think of the blond as the planet's most beautiful creature did NOT mean he was... that way. It was just the drink, Harry told himself as he swung his legs off the bed. That and the shock of Sirius and Lupin must be getting to him more than he'd realised. He did NOT fancy Draco. No way.

"Draco," he said loudly, deciding he'd risk waking him up to ask if he wanted a coffee. "Draco!"

"What?" The boy on the floor rolled over and opened his eyes. "Ow, the light's burning my eyes!"

Harry snorted with laughter. "God, how much did you drink last night?"

"Not enough," Draco groaned, "I can still remember most of it." He dragged himself into a sitting position.

"I'm going to go make some coffee," Harry stood up. "Want one?"

Draco nodded, but quickly stopped as his head felt like it was about to fall off. "Yeah, thanks. Not much milk, no sugar."

"OK." Harry slowly made his exit, and made his way to the guest bedroom where Mione and Ron were. "Morning, guys."

"Morning," Mione said weakly She was sitting on one of the beds and looked half-asleep.

"Murgh," was the only sound from the other bed, where Ron was conscious but clearly not feeling too communicative.

"I'm going downstairs to make coffee," Harry addressed Mione, as there was no realistic way that Ron would reply. "Do you want one?"

"I'll come give you a hand if you want," she offered, standing up and shooting a barbed glance at the mound that was Ron.

The two of them headed downstairs and into the kitchen. Mione filled the kettle and switched it on. Harry leant on the counter.

"So Harry, you sure got lucky last night. I hear you managed to pull twice," Mione said flippantly as she got milk out of the fridge.

"Yeah," Harry replied sheepishly, "but neither of them meant anything..." His face went red from lying, and he pretended to rummage in a cupboard for sugar. Well, he couldn't exactly tell the truth, could he? "I mean, Melfin didn't know what she was doing, and did your mystery informant tell you she threw up straight after? And Draco... well you'd been doing those shots too, so you know how killer they were!"

"Yeah," she agreed, spooning instant coffee into four mugs and pouring water on. She turned back to him. "How does Draco take his coffee?"

"Um, he said not much milk and no sugar."

"Ooh, so he's a coffee junkie," she grinned. "Either that or his hangover's worse than he's letting on." She made the first coffee the way Harry had said, followed by a milky one with sugar for herself, a strong black one for Ron ("punishment", she said) and a medium one with a little sugar for Harry.

Together, they forced Ron out of bed (cleverly using the threat of a wet flannel to the face) and all four of them congregated in Harry's room to drink their coffees and plan the cleanup effort. Then they disbanded to shower and get dressed. Draco offered to wait while Harry used the bathroom, Ron used the other upstairs one, and Mione used Harry's parents' en suite.

When he'd finished in the shower, Harry realised he'd left his body spray in his room. He wrapped himself in a towel and went to fetch it. Draco was sitting on the bed, playing some random game on his cell phone. He looked up briefly as Harry came in, but quickly dropped his eyes back to the game. What else do you do, when in the presence of someone you fancy (and shouldn't!), and they're only wearing a towel?

Harry picked up the bottle from his chest of drawers, and was about to leave the room when Draco spoke.

"Harry, wait."

"What is it?" Harry turned around to look at his friend. Suddenly he was highly aware of the fact he was only wearing a towel. "Um, can it wait?"

"No, not really," Draco said apprehensively. "It's about last night..." He was about to do the most painful thing he'd ever had to do, and it was made even worse by how absolutely godlike Harry looked in a towel. But it had to be done. "About what happened... with us."

Harry swung the door to and leant on the frame. "Yeah?" His heart was drumming. Please God, please...

"I never told you what the rumour was... at my old school. It's that I'm... See, thing is Harry, don't freak on me, please, but I'm... I'm gay."

Harry's stomach did a complicated series of flips and somersaults; the kind that would get him an A in gym class if it was him doing them rather than one of his vital organs. Could he mean... he felt the same way?

Draco grimaced inwardly. This was a horrible situation. Harry looked so bloody hot in that towel and Draco was having a hard time not declaring his love there and then, but he knew that Harry was about to freak. He'd probably think Draco was 'after him'. Which he kind of was, but if Harry knew that, Draco would lose a good friend. A good, clearly straight friend. Now for the nasty part.

"I mean, I'm gay but don't worry, I don't feel that way about you! You're my best friend, and I don't fancy you. So don't freak, OK?" Ouch.

Harry's insides collapsed. Why did he feel disappointed? He didn't fancy Draco... "It's OK, I'm not going to go nuts or anything, you're my friend and I support you whatever." He gave a huge, fake smile, hiding the hurt he was feeling. It had been hopeless all along. "Um, I'm going to go put some proper clothes on now, OK?"

Back in the bathroom, he leaned his back against the door and slid slowly to the ground. Goddammit, what the hell was he thinking? He might as well admit it. He fancied Draco. He fancied him so damn much. It was all so screwed up.

Alone in the bedroom, Draco let out a long sigh. That had hurt, but he couldn't risk losing Harry as a friend. Dammit, why were the nice, cute, hot ones always straight? He might as well admit it. He fancied Harry. And he couldn't tell him. It was all so screwed up.

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A/N: Well? What do you think of the parallel? What do you think of the chapter in general? Hit the pretty little purple button and tell me! I give cookies!


	6. The Crazy Sugar Fairy

**Chapter 6**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N: Hello again my lovely readers! Here it is, another chapter. And by the way, I'm intrigued by how you're all like 'Oh, poor Harry'. What about 'Oh, poor Draco'? He's hurting too you know!_

_Invisible Voice: Yes, cookies! If you read this before chapter 11 on Stars of Silver, please go read that as I have a solution to the email thing. Ta!_

_TruthxInxShadow: Yeah, Harry Draco slash is generally cool. I do have something planned for how they find out about each other's feelings. Wait and see! (Mad cackle)._

_iced-forest: Glad to hear that you likey. Here is the update!_

_Cherry0214: Yes, there are cookies. And I'm glad to hear you like leaving reviews, because I like getting them. And if you like Harry in a towel, I could try and squeeze in a bit of Draco in a towel later on!_

_Natasha AKA: Tash: I know. If I was reading this fic rather than writing it, it would so piss me off that they're not together yet. But fear not, it will happen. Honest. _

_The Earth Mystic: Thank you! I love the hope eggs thing... And about guys, well it all depends on your perception I guess. _

_lampshadesrgreat: He didn't want to, you know! And stupid stupid stupid Harry too!_

_Thank you so much people! All reviews much appreciated. And remember, if you read this, please review, even if only to say you've read it. _

_Cookies! (::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)_

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The task of clearing up the house only took about two hours, and the four of them were soon left with nothing to do. Not that they were complaining. Ron suggested ordering pizza, an idea that was immediately put into action. Lunch was followed by Debbie phoning to say she was going into town with Nadine. Lily and James were not due home until five thirty, so an afternoon of thumb-twiddling beckoned. The prospect of such a boring afternoon was so skull-numbing that when the phone rang after lunch, Harry was on his feet in seconds and straight down the hall to answer it.

"Hello?"

"Um, hi. Is Harry there, please?"

"Yeah, it's me. Who is this?"

"Oh, hi Harry! It's Melfin." After introducing herself, Melfin immediately launched into what she wanted to say. Harry found himself longing for the boring afternoon he'd been on track for. "I just wondered if you fancied meeting up this afternoon, you know, have a coffee, talk..."

Harry remembered the last time she'd said she wanted to 'talk' to him, and cringed.

"So, meet me in the Starbucks on Main Street and Ninth, at three thirty? I'll be there anyway. Bye!"

Before he could say anything, she'd hung up. Dude, was she constantly on a sugar rush or something? She was so hyper. All the time. Oh well, he might as well go. He'd never hear the end of it if he didn't.

"Guys?" He went back into the living room, where Ron, Draco and Mione were sitting on the couch looking like bored zombies. "Wanna go into town? That was Melfin. She said did I want to meet her in Starbucks at three thirty, and she'd be there even if I didn't show." He grimaced. "Thought I'd better go."

Ron nodded, snapping out of his stupor. In the dim and distant past, he'd gone out with the sugar fairy himself, and knew damn well what she was like. "Yeah, probably safer. I guess we could come and hide on the other side of the room while you guys have a little alone time..." He raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, God Ron! Get your brain out of the adult corner already!" Harry said in disgust, glaring at his friend. "Mione? Draco? You guys coming?"

"Guess so," Draco shrugged, getting up. Mione followed, and they all headed out.

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Harry was early, but it didn't matter; Melfin was already there. Ron, Draco and Mione sat down close to them - out of view but within earshot. Melfin burst into a wide smile as soon as she saw Harry, and beckoned him over. As he sat down, a waiter came over. He ordered a hot chocolate, and Melfin a latte. He wondered briefly if caffeine was a good idea for someone of her temperament, but said nothing.

"So, you made it!" She said brightly. "I'm so glad. I really wanted to apologise for last night... I mean it can't have been too pleasant for you." She blushed slightly.

"No, it's OK." In spite of himself, Harry realised he was smiling back. "Really."

"Oh, thanks," Melfin said in response. "I was so worried. I know I made a bit of an idiot of myself." She laughed. "Sorry."

Harry smiled. "No, really, it's fine."

"Great." She flicked her hair out of her eyes and got down to the serious business of gossip. "I rang Parvati this morning. She said you had something of a moment with a certain someone else after I left..."

Harry turned a rather strange shade of red. "Yeah, I kind of did. Too much drink and a few sadistic imaginations, I think!" They both laughed.

Draco was sitting in silence with Mione and Ron at the next table, hidden by a large pot plant. The three of them could hear every word, and his mind was going crazy. He was trying not to admit to himself that he was outrageously jealous. There was a spark between Harry and Melfin, and he knew it.

Harry himself was feeling surprised at the fact he was actually having fun talking to Melfin. He couldn't help thinking that maybe he should never have split up with her. He couldn't deny to his own heart that he felt something more than friendship for Draco, but that was just a dead end. Maybe he could be happy with Melfin. Maybe...

"Harry?" He looked up suddenly, to see her looking at him. "You just kind of spaced for a minute there."

"Sorry," he smiled. "Didn't realise."

She carried on looking at him, and moved her hand across the table to take hold of his. "So... big school dance coming up soon. D'you know who you're going with yet?"

"No, not yet." Harry shook his head. He had no idea what he was doing right now; was he really so desperate to take his mind off Draco? The answer was, in fact, yes. "You?"

"No," Melfin lowered her eyelashes shyly (Melfin? Shy?). "Unless you want to make me an offer I can't refuse..." She raised her eyes to look at him again. He had to admit she was good at playing him.

"Maybe..." Harry said evasively. Then he smiled. "Melfin, would you go to the dance with me?"

She pretended to inspect her nails for a moment. Then she looked him right in the eye and grinned. "I would love to." Then she kissed him.

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Monday morning was something of a flood of thoughts for Harry. His sleep had been tormented by Draco and Melfin, crowding in on his dreams, leaving him with no place to hide from his thoughts and worries. There was no confusion in his mind; he knew exactly what the issue was. He was having stronger feelings for the blond than he had ever had for anyone, but he knew nothing could happen. Melfin was fun, and he could see a future just maybe lifting its head above his sea of emotions. He fully intended to enjoy himself at the dance with her by his side.

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At lunch break, Mione noticed a sign on the pinboard in their homeroom. "Hey guys, look at this!"

Ron, Harry and Draco went over and read it.

Ron spoke first. "Anyone seen dropping litter will be put directly into detention and will spend the time litter picking. Mione, you called us over here to look at that?"

She sighed. "Ron, you idiot! Of course not! I was looking at _that _one." She pointed to another sheet, next to the one Ron had been reading. "'Any sophomores wanting to participate in this year's production of Romeo and Juliet should attend auditions in the auditorium at three forty this Wednesday'. You three up for it?"

"Yeah, sure," Harry agreed. "You thinking of going for Juliet then, Mione?"

She raised her eyebrows. "No way. Something a little less central, I think. How about you? Romeo perhaps?"

Harry considered it. "Maybe. Ron? Draco? What about you two?"

Draco shrugged. "Romeo I think. I haven't got a snowball's chance in hell, but I'll give it a go..."

Ron nodded. "Worth a shot. I'm thinking Montague or Capulet. I can see myself as head of a household. Mione, you should go for one of the wives!"

She smiled slyly. "Maybe I'll do that..."

Harry recognised the characteristic beginning of one of hers and Ron's frequent flirty conversations, and grimaced.

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_A/N: What can I say? I love using plays to keep a story going. It's how I am. Hope you like! Remember, I like reviews, and I give cookies._


	7. The Untimely Demise of a Test Tube

**Chapter 7**

Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine.

A/N: Hello everybody! It feels so good to be back at the keyboard again. I have had, by definition, a cruddy afternoon. I've been trying to do my GCSE Citizenship coursework, but failing as Citizenship is so boring it makes me feel like it would be more productive to sleep. Seriously. So here it is, another chapter.

_**Anegativegrl:** Yeah, well done. My fics are very predictable like that, I just love HPDM. And something positive? Don't hold your breath. But I'm not sure how much longer I can hold out before I lapse into joyful fluff. _

**Katatonia:** Glad to hear it! Thanks for reviewing.

_**zoomaphonethepirate:** That's a #5 with a little HarryDraco on the side? Please pull up to the service window! Love your name. And it won't be long before they do get together. _

_**Immortal Tears of:** I will be keeping it up. I'm even planning a sequel! _

_**M'Lady:** Harry has enough issues as it is! But thanks for the ideas. _

_**Invisible Voice:** Yes, go away Melfin! By the way, about that note on the last chapter. Please ignore it. I got you mixed up with someone else – sorry!_

_**The Earth Mystic: **Thank you! See below for why I chose Romeo and Juliet (I just think I should explain). And the last part of Hamlet is so good (I so prefer tragedies to comedies, don't ask me why)!_

_**TruthxInxShadow: **Yeah, I made the name Melfin up myself. I thought she needed something a little eccentric. _

_**Lucky Dragon Smile: **They'll realise sooner or later. Probably sooner. Oh well. It's OK that you didn't review earlier; you're here now . More the merrier. _

_**Shaleen: **Thanks!_

_**Cherry0214: **It might be a while before I can fit in Draco in a towel. But I'll try. And Harry as Juliet? Draco is SO the more effeminate one!_

_**Natasha AKA: Tash: **Yes, Melfin is totally wrong for him etc but that's how I want her. And no, I've never seen Card Captor Sakura. Wish I had now. And the phrase is 'get jiggy with it'. Not jiggly. Funny though. _

_**lampshadesrgreat**: As ever, thank you. And yes, Romeo and Juliet is great! _

_Cookies: (:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)_

_OK, about my choice of play. I chose R and J because it is the perfect tragic love story, I've just read it, it has lots of characters, and I'm studying it for GCSE English Literature. That and I like it. _

_QUESTION: Just something my English teacher said the other day, kind of worried me. How old are you in Sophomore year? Cause I thought Sophomores were 15 and 16, but she said my class would be Sophomores and we're Year 10, which is 14 and 15. Help! Anyone?_

_Oh yeah, and… Whooo! 55 reviews! With your support, I might just hit the 100 mark before this fic reaches its natural end, which won't be for a while. _

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It was Wednesday, it was three forty five, and nothing was happening. About forty Sophomores were waiting in the auditorium for the Head of Drama, Miss Trelawney, to turn up. She had a reputation for being shockingly disorganised, and was usually about ten minutes late for her lessons, so nobody was surprised by her absence. They were taking the opportunity to talk amongst themselves and work on their audition pieces. Most people had planned something; Minster was a highly drama-focused school.

"Ow!" Harry broke off from his line and bent over, cradling his left hand. "Shit, that hurts!"

"What is it?" Draco asked in a concerned tone.

"Like you don't know!" Harry snapped. "It's where you exploded that test tube in Chemistry!" He knew he was being unfair overreacting like this, but he was mad at Draco at the moment, and this was a good excuse to vent his rage over their relationship that would never be.

Draco flushed, Harry fumed, and Ron and Mione burst out laughing.

"Guys!" Harry cried indignantly. "It hurts you know!"

"Sorry," Mione giggled. "But it was so funny when you guys did that! I thought Snape was going to go through the roof!"

Harry couldn't stop himself; he laughed too, forgetting the pain. The cuts weren't even that bad; after all, it had only been a few bits of broken glass. He couldn't really blame Draco for it either. Even if it had been the blond that blew up the test tube, Harry really should have pointed out to him beforehand that it generally wasn't all too clever to mix acid with rubidium. Oh well, live and learn.

Their fit of laughter was suddenly interrupted as Miss Trelawney entered, ten minutes late as usual. She went to the front of the room, which was silent by now. She smiled round at all of them.

"Thank you all for coming," she began cheerfully. "It's most refreshing to see how enthusiastic you all are. Who has an audition piece prepared?" Most of the assembled people put their hands up. "Oh, excellent! Shall we get on with some warm-up exercises then?"

Ten minutes later, they were all settled on chairs, scribbling down their names and details on pieces of paper for her reference. Then they broke off into brief rehearsals in groups.

Harry and Ron had chosen part of the scene at Capulet's ball, Harry as Tybalt and Ron as Capulet. Draco and Mione were doing a conversation between Romeo and the Nurse.

They didn't have long to practise. The first group was soon called up, and everyone else sat down to watch. The first piece went a bit wrong, as Millicent forgot her lines as Juliet. Then Harry and Ron were called up, and they started. Draco and Mione sat in the audience with their fingers crossed for their friends. They didn't need to though; it went well. Then it was their own turn.

Harry watched with bated breath as they performed. Draco made a fantastic Romeo. 'God I wish I could be his Juliet,' he thought. 'Whoa, did I just think that?'

It was Thursday when the auditionees found out the result.

Recess found Mione and Ron huddled round the pinboard with a load of other people.

"Score!" Ron grinned. "I got Montague!"

Mione laughed. "And I'm 'Apothecary of Mantua'!"

At that moment, Harry and Draco entered the room having been at the lockers. They came over.

"Hey, Romeo!" Mione called to Draco. "Nice one!"

"I got it?" Draco asked disbelievingly, dodging quickly through the desks to get to where she was standing. "Yes!"

"And Harry…" Mione added, as he reached them.

"What? Did I get anything?"

She grinned wickedly. "I'll give you a clue. Dark haired, sulky and I hope you like cats!"

Harry gasped. "I got Tybalt! Great!"

"Quite a skilled little group, aren't we?" Ron asked jokingly. "Oh, look! Draco, there's a note on here for you." He unpinned a note from the sign and handed it over.

Draco opened it. "Oh my God. Um, who got Juliet?"

"Blaise Zabini," Harry read from the list.

Draco looked up. "Hmm. Isn't that the one from English class that-"

"'Doesn't like to be called a redhead'." Harry joined in. They laughed.

Draco nodded. "That's the one. Says here they reckon it'd be a great publicity stunt if Romeo and Juliet went to the dance together, if that's OK with us." He shrugged. "Fine by me."

The first meeting to organise rehearsals was on Friday lunchtime, and by the time the bell went it was all organised. Draco and Blaise would be going together. By some stroke of luck, she'd left it till the last minute to get a date; the dance was the next Saturday. So it was all fixed. Harry felt oddly glad. At least if Draco was with a girl, he'd know there was nothing serious going on.

_A/N: I've started going quite quickly now. The dance will be full of action! And angst. But it'll be cute angst. I think. Bye for now!_


	8. Secrets From Friends

**Chapter 8**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N: Hi people! Thanks for all the great reviews this week. I'm in a seriously Romeo and Juliet mood today. We got this homework for English where we had to pick a character and make their mask for the Capulet ball. I went kind of nuts (I didn't have much to do this weekend) and made Tybalt and Mercutio. Don't know which one I'll submit. Oh well, it's only Saturday. There's still time to choose._

_**Schulyr:** (Laughs) Thanks! _

_**Immortal Tears of: **Thank you, and will do._

_**Elizabeth Turner: **Yeah I'm from near London. I take it you're from the US? _

_**Lucky Dragon Smile: **Thanks. I've just remembered I have a 2004 Simpsons calendar, which has all the US holidays on it (and some weird ones like 'Cheese Throwing Festival, Denmark' – OK I made that one up, but there are some bizarre ones)._

_**Natasha AKA: Tash: **I was in a bit of a hurry and dialogue takes up more space so I didn't notice it being too short until after I posted it. And did I promise fluff? Oops. Sorry. Thanks for the help. _

_**zoomaphonethepirate: **Thank you for your custom! Here is your cute angst!_

_**Cherry0214: **I know! They're hopeless aren't they? And I hope that was a joke, as you're a great reviewer and I so don't want to lose you, but I don't write full-on slash. I do do slash, but nothing that heavy. Sorry. _

_**lampshadesrgreat: **Yeah, the sophomore thing is SO confusing. I still don't think I get it completely. Maybe I'll ask my English teacher. Lol. _

_**TruthxInxShadow: **Thanks. Still not totally sure I get it, but thanks anyway. _

_**Invisible Voice: **Did you find those handcuffs yet? _

_**Katatonia: **I watched that Friends episode too! I kind of have mixed feelings about it getting replaced by the Simpsons, which I love (on C4 weekdays at 6?) but I'll get over it. :-) Oh well, I digress. The US school system is confusing. _

_Cookies, as usual: (::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)_

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By 7.50pm on Saturday, Minster High was packed. Harry had arrived with Melfin just after the dance started, and met up with his friends just inside the main doors before going on to the hall. Melfin looked great, in a shimmery green dress and silver jewellery, but Harry didn't notice. His thoughts were completely riveted on Draco. The blond boy was wearing black trousers and a pale blue shirt that brought out the subtle colour in his eyes.

Harry tried with all his power to refocus his misspent attention on his date. The pain of his feelings for Draco had been intensifying even more lately, and he was starting, imperceptibly, to crack up. He knew he wouldn't be able to keep his thoughts completely to himself for much longer. The big question was who would be in the vicinity when he cracked.

The hall looked fantastic. They really had gone nuts on decorations, Harry reflected as he looked around. Then Melfin dragged him off to dance, and he stopped thinking.

In retrospect, he didn't know how he got through the evening. It was a whirl of forcing himself not to look at Draco, who was off with Blaise promoting the play to anyone who'd listen, and avoiding having to kiss Melfin. But before he knew it, the first slow dance was kicking off, and she was draping herself over him. Guilt bit hard, and he felt like a complete rat for going out with her when he wanted someone else.

Then she kissed him, and the rat feeling increased a thousand fold. He didn't know what to do except hope it would all be over soon.

It felt like an age, but soon it was over. Lily came to pick them both up, and feeling duty-bound he sat in the back seat with Melfin as they took her home. Lily asked them how the dance had gone. Harry said little, but Melfin more than made up for it. At last they dropped her off. He quickly kissed her goodnight (rat, rat, rat, screamed his brain) and got into the passenger seat.

"Honey, what's up?" Lily asked as she turned out of Melfin's street.

"What?" He said in surprise. "Nothing's 'up'."

His mother gave a wry laugh. "Yeah right. I can tell when something's wrong with you, sweetie. So tell me."

"Nothing's wrong!" Harry insisted.

"Look. You're a successful high school kid. You've got a good part in the school play, you're pretty popular and you've just been to a dance with a girl who's pretty, nice and totally stuck on you," Lily told him without taking her eyes off the road. "And something's eating you. You're kind of quiet and I can tell you're a bit... down. So tell me."

Harry opened his mouth to deny it again, but nothing came to mind, so he shut it again and thought. "OK, so there is something. But you can't do anything about it. No one can."

"Maybe not, but it helps to talk." She put on a 'counsellor' voice as she said this. Harry didn't laugh. "Boy, it _must_ be bad."

"Mm," Harry answered quietly.

"Come on," Lily coaxed. "What is it? I don't like seeing you so down."

He took a deep breath. It shook slightly, and she glanced over with a worried expression. "It-it's something kind of... big, mom. I'm not sure I can tell you..."

"'Cause it's so big? Or 'cause I'm your mother?" She asked calmly.

"I... I don't know."

They sat in silence for a few minutes. At last Harry mustered the courage to speak. "It's just that I... I'm in love." A few seconds of profound silence followed.

"Well, I take it it isn't Melfin, or else this wouldn't be a problem." Lily said slowly.

"No," Harry confirmed, so quietly she could barely hear him.

"So who is it?" She inquired gently.

"I can't tell you."

"Give me clues then. Um, do I know them?"

"Yes," Harry said reluctantly, giving in. He knew he wasn't going to get away from her now.

"Do I like them?"

"Well, you've never given me reason to believe otherwise."

"Come on, Harry. I'm your mom, you can tell me."

"I can't! I really can't tell you."

"Well then, I've got an idea. So if you don't tell me, I'll guess. And if I'm wrong it'll be hideously embarrassing for us both." Lily's maternal intuition had kicked in, and she did have a damn good idea what was going on.

Harry said nothing as she turned onto their drive.

"Come on, honey. Or I'll guess." By using 'I'll guess' as a jokey threat, she had hoped to get a smile out of him, but as she turned off the ignition and looked at him, she found the exact opposite. Tears were welling up. Her intuition increased. She reached over the gearshift and took hold of his hand. "Harry?"

Tears beginning to flow, Harry took a deep breath. "It's... Draco. I'm gay, mom."

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Harry wasn't quite sure how he got inside, but next thing he knew he was in the hallway.

"Your dad's asleep," Lily whispered. "And so's Deb. Go on up, I'll bring you a hot chocolate." He went upstairs as he was told, and sat on his bed, feeling numb. He had cracked at last. Telling someone had made it scarily real.

About two minutes later, his mother came in with two mugs of hot chocolate and sat down next to him. He still looked tearful, so she put them both down and gave him the hug he so needed.

"How close was your guess then?" He asked quietly.

She smiled. "You probably won't believe me, but spot on."

"Are you mad at me?"

"Of course not!" She looked at him in utter surprise.

He shrugged. "Doesn't matter. It's never going to happen anyway."

Lily smiled again. "Well, I've got some news for you. Turns out our little friend swings that way too."

"I know, but-" Harry did a rapid double take and stared at her. "Hang on! How do you know?"

"You're not the only one who comes to me with problems you know. A few weeks ago, a certain someone read something about a certain other person on a certain website..."

"Deb!" Harry shook his head. "I really didn't think she'd look at that site. I mean, I looked at it myself but I got distracted before I found the bit about him."

Lily nodded. "Well she read it. She came to me and told me straight after. She didn't know whether to come clean to you or just keep her mouth shut. Anyway, he's that way too... OK I'll say it, he's gay too, so I think you _are_ in with a chance..."

Harry shook his head again. "No, he told me himself the morning after my party, but he said he didn't feel that way about me..." He dissolved into tears again, and Lily put her arms around him tightly.

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After taking Blaise home, Draco said goodnight to his mother, went upstairs and flopped down on the wicker chair in the corner of his room. His schoolbag was on the floor, and he reached down and pulled a piece of paper out of it. He knew he shouldn't have this. Harry had given him his locker keys and asked him to fetch one of his books from the locker, and Draco had found the paper. He didn't know how he'd kept his mouth shut all day after seeing it. What was he going to do about it?

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_A/N: Ooh, cliffie! It'll be a week until the next update (unless something big happens, like me getting half-crushed by an insanely large pile of homework). But no, updating is my way of unwinding at weekends. And in the week, but that rarely ever happens any more. Too much stuff to do. As ever, review! Rewards are undying gratitude and, more valuably (ha) cookies! Thank you!_

_PS. **the counter** is a sad and lonely freak with nothing better to do than work out statistics! Sorry people, but that review I got from him/her really pissed me off and I had to say something. Just look at the review, or look up his/her biography. I think it says it all._


	9. Kippers!

**Chapter 9**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N: I wrote this on Saturday, but the publishing engine was down by the time I was ready to post, so not my fault it's late! _

_I resolved the mask thing, for anyone who's curious (just in case anyone bothers reading this stuff). I submitted the Mercutio mask, and gave the Tybalt one to someone in my class who hadn't done one (purely due to her own laziness, but I was in a generous mood). Now our English teacher's making us do drama performances from the play in small groups. I'm Mercutio, and my bit has so many dirty jokes in it. On the other hand, I think I get it more than anyone else in my class will. _

_**Ms-Wood: **Don't leave me alone! Reviews are good! Anyway, loving the Melfin Haters club thing. I'm updating once a week (except this time), so stop complaining. At least I'm consistent. _

_**Bluebellfairy: **Thank you! _

_**Immortal Tears of: **God, and I thought I had reason to hate the counter. I can't believe s/he did that to you. Mean! Thanks, as ever, for reviewing. _

_**Pandora Black: **Can't say I've ever heard the Fred/Harry idea before. Oh well, each to their own._

_**Yana 5: **I knew I'd seen your name somewhere before! You reviewed on Kissing the Enemy! I love(d) that fic! Thanks for reviewing. _

_**Natasha AKA: Tash: **Hope you've recovered from that party. As to your specific comments, just read this chapter…_

_**Malfoy Snogger: **Strange name you've got there. Understandable though. Glad to hear you're 'hooked'!_

_**blackdragonofdeath13:** Thank you thank you!_

_**Lucky Dragon Smile: **Glad that someone appreciated the cliffhanger. I was rather proud of it. _

_**Allie: **Yes, I pride myself on being evil… (cackles). _

_**AJ586: **I don't think I meant elevator when I said lift. I went back and looked, and I think I meant lift as in when someone picks you up in their car and takes you somewhere. Not sure what you call that in the US. Please tell me. And when you say Americans can't make a decent decision to save their lives, are you referring to anything specific (just out of interest)? _

_**TruthxInxShadow: **If you were in Spain, they would have given you Friday off too. My Spanish teacher was telling us all about it the other day. And by the way dear, the reason you don't find the US school system confusing is because you're American. _

_**The Earth Mystic: **You are SO right! Thank you so much for saying so, you're really sweet. _

_**Restless Mage: **Thank you for reviewing! _

_**zoomaphonethepirate: **I live to annoy people like that. But don't worry. The paper is explained in this chapter. _

_**Katatonia: **Thank you for the length of your review; who knows, it may spur me to increase the length of my chapters… At the mo, I spend about an hour on a chapter (not including responding to reviews), and I do this every weekend. I can try and increase that if it'll make you happy._

_**Invisible Voice: **Thank you for being so nice! I hope the counter realises some day that everyone hates him/her. Then maybe they'll bugger off and, wait for it… 'stop taking up the bandwidth'. _

_**Cherry0214: **You sound pretty knowledgeable… do you get uber-upset/slapped often? Fear not, they will get together. I just have my own thing planned. Old habits die hard, and even if I'm writing this week by week, I can't help formulating ideas in advance. Thanks!_

_I love you guys! Your reviews make me v v happy! This next chapter takes as its inspiration something that once happened to me when I was staying at my best friend's house (that categorically does NOT mean I'm that way inclined, it's only a very small part of this that copies what really happened). _

_Cookies: (:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)(:)_

_A/N 2: This is a repost, so I can remove the lyrics of the song at the end as it's no longer allowed._

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Draco spent Monday morning sick with worry. Harry hadn't turned up to school. He didn't know what to think. He knew he must be in love with Harry; why else would he be this worried?

At recess, he, Ron and Mione trekked off across the school to find Debbie, in the hope that she could tell them what was wrong with her brother.

"I'm not really sure, to be honest guys," she shrugged when they found her. "I didn't even see him this morning. Mom just told me at breakfast that he was staying off today 'cos he wasn't well. Sorry…"

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The boy in question was, at that moment, sitting in bed watching kids' TV and eating buttered toast triangles. Lily sure knew how to treat sick teenagers. Not that he was sick – not really. He'd felt a little nauseous when he woke up, granted, but that was with the dread of seeing Draco. His mother had understood completely when he'd said he felt sick, and insisted that he took the day off. He was glad. He couldn't stay off school forever to avoid seeing Draco, but right now he just couldn't face it.

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Harry stayed off school on Tuesday too, but he felt guilty for skiving, and in the end decided that he had to go back on Wednesday. It was just one day, after all; Minster High had a day off on Thursday for the birthday of the school's founder, and they'd been given Friday off too as there wasn't much point in just going back in for one day before the weekend.

He set out on Wednesday feeling like he was carrying a rock in his stomach. Once or twice he considered turning round and running straight home, but he fought it. He couldn't avoid it forever. He had to face this; he couldn't ignore his best friend forever.

On arrival in homeroom, he was nearly strangled by a hug from Mione. "Harry! Are you OK? We didn't know what was wrong with you, we were so worried…"

"Mione," Draco interjected lazily from his comfortable position sitting on a desk, "go easy on him. He's been ill for God's sake, the last thing he needs is you choking him. Good to see you back, Harry."

"Thanks," Harry said quietly, rubbing his neck where he'd been hugged and hoping his tone didn't betray his thoughts. All he needed to get over this was time.

"Anyway, before you turned up I was about to suggest that we all meet up and hang out tomorrow night," Draco yawned. How did he manage to look so gorgeous all the time? Harry kicked himself mentally. No more thoughts like that.

Mione shook her head. "Sorry, I can't. I'm going to see my grandparents tomorrow and I won't be back till late."

"Me neither," Ron added. "My mom's all stoked on the idea of us spending the day together as a family for some bizarre reason. I have a feeling she's taking us to the zoo or something." He pulled a face.

"Well Ron, with a look like that you'll fit right in with the monkeys," Mione said smoothly.

Draco turned to Harry, his heart beating just a fraction faster. "Harry?"

This was it! This was the perfect chance. One night, one exertion of will not to say anything, and then it'd all be out of his system. "Yeah, sure. What time?"

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"Harry! Hi!" At quarter to seven on Thursday night, Harry was greeted and ushered in by Draco's mom. She was wearing a long black dress and had her hair piled on top of her head. "Sorry to be so rude, but I can't stop to chat, I'm going out with some work colleagues and I'm running a bit late. Have a nice evening, bye!" Then she was gone, zooming out of the door in a waft of expensive perfume. Harry stared after her in surprise for a moment or two, then went in and shut the door behind him before making his way into the living room, where he found Draco doing some last minute tidying.

Harry cleared his throat and Draco turned. "Oh, hi Harry." He dumped a pile of papers on top of a small table and straightened up. "Sorry, it's a bit of a mess in here. Sit down, if you can find a bit that's clear. Do you want a drink?"

Harry flopped onto the couch with a smile. "Stop exaggerating. I mean look at my house – it never even looks half as tidy as this. And a lemonade'd be great, thanks." Draco nodded and exited.

"I thought we could get a pizza or a Chinese takeaway or something," he called through from the kitchen. "That OK?"

"Yeah, great," Harry answered as Draco came back in and handed him the lemonade.

The blond seated himself in an armchair and took a sip of his own drink. "To be honest I'm just trying to butter you up. I forgot there's this programme on tonight that I really want to watch, and I was wondering if you'd mind."

"Nah," Harry shrugged. "I don't mind. What is it?"

"It's a sort of drama documentary thing, on the life of Anne Frank," Draco replied. "I thought it might help for history class, y'know with the Holocaust and that, and I just kind of wanted to see it anyway."

"Yeah, no problem. So long as you're paying for the pizza," Harry smirked.

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Towards the end of the programme, Harry was starting to wish he hadn't agreed to watch it. He was no good with watching upsetting things on TV, and this was just about as bad as it got. As the final credits rolled, he couldn't help a tear. Then that tear led to another, and another. He sniffed slightly, and Draco looked over. By the time the blond realised what was going on, the floodgates had opened and Harry was crying properly.

"I'm sorry, I'll be alright in a minute. I just can't help it, stuff like this always makes me sad, and this was just…" He trailed off, choking his words out through his tears.

"Hey, hey…" Draco got up and came over to sit next to him, putting an arm round his shoulders. "It's OK! It's over, and nothing like that can happen nowadays. Besides, I bet they're all together and happy in heaven."

Harry looked at him in surprise. "Heaven? I didn't know you were Christian."

Draco smiled softly. "I'm not. If I was, I wouldn't be able to do this…" He leaned towards Harry and kissed him gently on the mouth.

Harry froze in shock and delight at this new sensation, unexpected but so wonderful too. The softness and warmth embraced his heart, and he relaxed. His mind filled with memory of their drunken clinch at his party, and comparison of that raw, semi-conscious passion with this soft, sweet kiss, barely more than just a brush of lips. Head overpowering his heart at last, he pulled away mere moments after their lips had touched.

"Wh-what's going on?" He asked outright.

"Harry," Draco began in a soft, silky voice that made the dark-haired boy almost tremble with want - he wanted more, he wanted them to be close again… "You look me in the eye and tell me you don't want this."

"I do, I really do, but why now? How do you know what I want? And why does it matter to you anyway, you never wanted me in the same way I wanted you-" Harry was cut off as Draco lifted his hand and placed one slender finger on Harry's protesting lips.

"Shhh. Long story short, I wanted you all along. When I told you I was gay, I thought you'd be mortified if I told you I liked you, so I kept my mouth shut. I didn't want to lose my best friend."

"But why now?"

"I… I found something… in your locker, that day you sent me to get that book out for you. I should never have taken it, but…" Draco pulled a piece of crumpled, pale blue notepaper from his pocket and handed it to Harry.

"Oh my God…" Seeing the paper's covering of hearts, flowers and Draco's name, Harry recognised it as his own distracted doodling. He made to hand it back, but glimpsed writing on the other side and turned it over. His jaw fell slightly as he took in the same adornments, but with his own name in place of Draco's. He looked up questioningly into Draco's grey eyes.

Draco blushed slightly, a rare sight in his pale skin. Harry gave him a small smile and he responded in kind. Then he lifted his hand again and lightly brushed away the last few tears on Harry's face. His heart fluttered as Harry's green eyes watched his movements, relaxed and happy.

"I can't believe this is happening," Harry murmured, a soft smile spreading over his face.

"Me neither," Draco whispered back. "How long have you… you know?"

"Felt like this?" Their faces were close, so close that Draco could almost feel Harry's words on his skin. "I don't know, I guess it's been getting stronger ever since I met you. I… I never felt like this about a guy before. I was kind of cracking up. My mom asked me what was wrong when we were going home after the dance, 'cos I was being really quiet. I… I told her, I wouldn't have done it through choice but it hurt so much…" He trailed off, his face betraying remnants of the pain he was talking about. Draco's heart melted and he put his arms round Harry, holding him tightly.

"It's OK," he said quietly. "It's not like that any more, you know how I feel now. And just so you know, it wasn't exactly a picnic for me either. I never wanted to have to tell you that lie that I didn't want you like that, but I was too scared to tell you the truth. I'm so sorry…" Slowly, they drew apart and looked at each other. "I'm not quite sure how I managed to lie like that, to be honest. I wanted you so much it hurt, so much it scared me."

"I…" Harry closed his eyes briefly, smiling sweetly as he tried to imprint the moment in his memory. "I don't know what else to say. I think I've used up all my words."

Draco smiled back at him. "Well, you know what they say. Actions speak louder than words…" Then he kissed him again, and all conscious thought was lost as Harry felt himself falling into comfortable darkness.

He was surrounded by that sweet scent that he remembered so vividly from the party, and warmth that made him feel so safe he never wanted to be anywhere else ever again. This was different now though; it was a whole new experience. Where the kiss at the party had been in a state of extreme drunkenness, they were both fully in their right minds. Where the first moment they had shared tonight had been gentle and painfully cautious, this was the split-second capture of raw feeling, encapsulated in one simple action.

Suddenly, Harry found himself literally falling. He opened his eyes and realised that in the grip of the moment, they had overbalanced, still in each other's arms. To his surprise, he wasn't embarrassed, despite the acute awkwardness of being flat on his back on a couch with Draco on top of him.

"Oops," he said jokingly, and they both cracked out laughing.

At last, Draco sat up, brushing his unruly hair off his face. "Sorry." He brushed a tear of laughter from his eye and grinned. "My fault."

Harry shrugged and captured him in another kiss. He twined his fingers into the soft strands of Draco's hair, feeling the other boy's arms wrap around his waist. Then he felt a warm tongue sweep gently over his closed lips, and opened his mouth slowly, relishing this feeling; the feeling of lovers' first tentative kiss.

When at last they pulled apart, they gazed into each other's eyes. A bubble of happiness enclosed them both, finally given the opportunity to look at each other without justification.

"I'm so glad I don't have to keep secrets from you any more," Harry said with a smile.

He was answered with a small flutter of laughter from Draco. He looked at the blond indignantly. "What's so funny?"

Draco smiled placatingly. "I'm not laughing at you. It's just that what you just said reminded me so much of this song I know."

"What song?" Harry asked curiously.

"You won't know it. It's by this random Finnish band. I got their album over the internet. Actually, you might like it. Do you want to hear it?"

"Yeah, OK."

Harry waited for a minute or two while Draco went to fetch the CD.

"Right, here we go then." Draco reappeared and went over to the stereo. A moment later, the song started. Harry found himself listening to the words carefully.

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_A/N: The song is Liquid by The Rasmus. When I was listening to that song recently I thought: 'Oh my God, it's the perfect Harry and Draco song!'. Look it up if you get the chance; it's brilliant. And OMG! Bumper chappie! It's nearly twice as long as usual. Wow. Review! (Pweese!) If I get enough reviews then I'll post Chapter 10 up this weekend (actually, I'll probably post it anyway)._

_PS: I would have put a slash warning on this chapter, but I didn't want to give away what happens. And as for the title, what can I say? I find kippers funny (don't ask)._


	10. Dragons and Chimaeras

**Chapter 10**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N:_ _OK, I'm not sure whether to be all 'yay' and happy yet, as review-counting thing is being total arse and I have managed to come up with about six different versions of how many reviews I actually have. So carry on reviewing, people, and hope it sorts itself out, so I can properly celebrate when I hit the big 1-0-0. It's displayed all my reviews, fortunately, except 1 (sorry **M'Lady**, I know you reviewed) that hasn't showed up for some reason, except on an email. Stupid system (no offence, fanfiction, love you really). So on with the show!_

_**The Earth Mystic**: Oops. Thanks for the help! Glad you liked. _

_**Cherry0214:** Hmm, will consider that (all of it). Think I looked at your bio with a view to reading your stuff, but then didn't 'cos I never read R-rated (with the exception of The Chariot, which my friend recommended). STOP PRESS! Just checked site again, and read My Last Breath. OH MY GOD! It was so sweet and so sad… You should so do that sequel thing. If you're still interested. Sorry about not reading any of your other stuff, I mean you're one of my bestest reviewers, but I have a tendency to get freaked out by Rs. _

_**TruthxInxShadow: **I saw POA with my boyfriend (now EX boyfriend) so I didn't really get to think like that. But doesn't Draco look hot in that movie? And I'd been toying with the doodling idea for a while. It evolved over time, and I'm so glad you liked it. Kippers rock (especially puréed ones)!_

_**Immortal Tears of:** England is cool. Though America has its pluses too. Like brilliant shopping etc. Chapter made me happy happy too!_

_**Yana5:** Thanks! Fluff rocks. _

_**Katatonia:** It's OK, the chapter turned out long anyway. And yay Austin Powers! I watched 15 minutes of one of those movies and ended up having a dream where I was in a strawberry-jam-sandwich-making contest with Austin Powers himself. No joke. _

_**Invisible Voice:** Kippers are cool! I have a bizarre obsession with them. They make me laugh. So does Starbucks (no idea why). _

_**Lucky Dragon Smile:** Thanks dude! _

_**Chibi-NarutoKawaii:** So glad I managed to convert someone to the Rasmus. They are so cool. I have all 3 of their albums. And thank you so much for saying this is 'the best AU high school fic you have ever seen'. Makes me happy!_

_**AJ586:** American Idiot is brilliant. Thanks for the answers, now the bad news. I'm only 14 (15 in January) and not all that great at writing slash, so no-go with upping the rating. Sorry. _

_**Bluebellfairy:** Glad you liked the doodling idea! Also thanks for all the really nice things you said (blushes). And when you do Draco as an AU character, he's pretty much yours to mould (though I do try and think of how the real Draco would be without any of the nasty influences in the real books). _

_**Xandria Nirvana:** I said their parts at the end of Chapter 7. Here is update (weekly, remember). And if this reaches you before my next email, I'm making progress with your beta material. It's 20 to 6 on Sunday and I've finished up to Chapter 3 on the Hillary story. Will probably finish by Tuesday, hope that's OK._

_**M'Lady:** I don't think the review thing has posted yours, but I got the email so I do know you reviewed. And yay Rasmus! They rock. As to how they're going to, ah, for want of a better word 'come out', I have something dramatic planned. And thanks for mentioning Melfin, I can really work with that (can't believe I forgot about her, oh well I guess she's just too annoying to remember). _

_While I think of it, a small survey. Who likes Melfin? Say in review if you do. _

_Cookies: (::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)_

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Harry woke on Friday morning feeling blissfully happy. It took him a few moments to work out why, then he remembered where he was. He smiled, closing his eyes again to take in the full amazingness of the situation.

The fact was, he was in Draco's house, in Draco's room, and to be more specific, in Draco's bed. His memory of the previous night was like a beautiful dream. They had watched that documentary, he had cried, and somehow the whole weird thing had turned into a confessional. They had talked for hours (though talking had not been the only demand on their time), then they had gone to bed. No sooner had Harry fallen asleep in his sleeping bag on the floor, though, than his mind had kicked off on a nightmare.

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In his mind's eye, Harry was seeing the whole tragic story from the night before, but with himself and his family and friends in the starring roles. Suddenly he was lifted out and back into life as he knew it, by Draco shaking him awake. He cried more then, whispering what had happened as he trembled in Draco's arms. The blond stroked his hair, telling him everything was OK, moved almost to tears himself.

Neither of them knew how long they spent like that, sat on the floor in each others' arms. Then at last, Harry's breathing calmed and he pulled free, trying to regain his composure.

"Do you… do you want to come in with me for the rest of the night?" Draco asked cautiously. "I… I promise I won't try anything, it's just it might stop the nightmare coming back." Harry had nodded wordlessly. True to his word, Draco didn't try anything, and sure enough, the nightmare didn't come back.

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Opening his eyes again, Harry slipped out of bed, being careful not to wake Draco, who was still sleeping, with a look of angelic innocence on his face. Harry smiled at the sight, and sat on the end of the bed, reluctant to wake him.

'God, he looks so adorable,' he thought, revelling in not having to deny thoughts like that any more. 'Should I wake him? Will he get mad? Or will he get mad if I let him sleep late?' He smiled more. It was like being married, worrying about whether to let the other person sleep late.

Undecided, he stayed there for a few minutes. Then, suddenly, Draco sat up. "Harry, how long have you been watching me sleep?"

Harry blushed. "Not long. Are you mad?"

Draco grinned. "Now why would I be mad?" He reached out and took Harry's hand, drawing them together again. "Means I must be quite cute when I'm sleeping."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Says who?"

Draco swatted him gently, still grinning. "I'd watch it if I were you, Mr Comedian."

Harry laughed and kissed him on the nose. "OK, so maybe you do. But we should get this married-couple-type stuff out of our systems. What time did your mom say she'd be home?"

Draco shrugged. "Doesn't matter. She'll be happy for us. And we're both fully clothed, aren't we? Anyway, I'm glad you brought that up. Who _are _we going to tell?"

"Well," Harry thought for a moment. "I guess you know better than I do. I mean, from your school in Connecticut. What's the bitchiness climate here like, compared to there?"

"Not bad," Draco said thoughtfully. "But there's always one or two in every school that'll rip to shreds anyone who's different."

"Maybe not anyone at school then."

"I guess not. How about Ron and Mione?"

Harry smiled wickedly. "Let them work it out for themselves."

"Family?"

"Well, my mom'll guess." Harry rolled his eyes. "She's good at that."

"And I tell my mom eve- well, pretty much everything."

Harry decided on this as the opportune moment to release a piece of information he hadn't mentioned yet. "My sister knows you're gay."

"WHAT?" Draco stared at him as if he'd just announced that the White House was being bulldozed to build a new Starbucks. "How the flying fuck does she know?"

Harry looked down. "That website thing. I looked but I never found the bit about you. But it turns out Deb did. My mom told me."

Draco's jaw dropped. "Oh that's just bloody marvellous. Your sister and your mom knew I was gay before anyone else in this town. Just bloody marvellous."

"So," Harry quickly got the conversation back on track, "we're telling your mom, my mom and, I guess, my sister. What about your dad?"

"Ha. Like he'd care. I'll tell my mom she can tell him next time she speaks to him if she wants. How about yours?"

Now it was Harry's turn to laugh. "Don't think he'd be all that happy about it. I spoke to Sirius the other day and he said, and I quote, 'I have no intention whatsoever of telling James about me and Remus, he'd have a bloody fit'. So possibly not the best idea to tell him for a while."

Draco shrugged. "Three people's enough to be going on with."

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At ten thirty, Izzy got home. They met her in the hallway. "Mom, got something to tell you." Draco said a little nervously.

"Yeah?" She hung up her coat and turned to face the two of them.

"Um, we kind of got together last night. We're, ah, going out. But we're not telling people. Only you, and Harry's mom and sister. And… Dad, if you want to tell him."

Izzy smiled. "Congratulations. About time too. You two are perfect for each other. I might tell your dad, honey, depends on how forthcoming he's being with money when I speak to him." She smirked.

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At eleven fifteen, they took Harry home. After surreptitiously kissing Draco goodbye and promising to call him, he unlocked the door and went inside, heading straight for the kitchen, where he found his sister standing doing something at the counter.

"Hey Deb." She turned round, looking surprised and ever so slightly annoyed. Harry's curiosity stirred. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," she answered shortly. He noticed that she was wrapping a bandage around her hand as she spoke. "Good time last night?"

Harry couldn't stop a slight blush, and cursed himself. "Yeah, not bad." God damn it, now she had the upper hand. Funnily enough, she didn't seem to care much. She was just about to leave when Lily came in carrying several grocery bags.

"Hey guys," she said brightly.

"Hi mom," Deb said quickly, and was halfway out the door when Harry spoke.

"Deb, wait. Um, while you're both here I want to say something. Mom, you know half of it already. But Deb, just so you understand this, I, ah, well I'm gay."

She shrugged. "Makes sense. Take it this means you got it together with the Dragon last night."

Harry gaped. "What is it with the women in this family?"

"We're just too smart for our own good," Lily smiled. "Congratulations sweetie."

"Well, I've got to go," Deb said, at last managing to leave. "Meeting Nadine on MSN."

Lily rolled her eyes. "God, tech-heads. I hope you haven't got any pressing online appointments; I need someone to help with these bags. That OK?"

"Yeah, sure." Harry grabbed the nearest bag and started unpacking it. "Um, mom, don't tell dad about this? Please?"

"My lips are sealed," she replied reassuringly.

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After dinner, Harry was leaving the kitchen when James stopped him. "Harry, could you take this up to your sister? She left it down here. I don't know how many times I've told her not to leave stuff lying around…"

Harry took the proffered magazine and headed out. When he reached the landing, he stopped outside Deb's door and knocked.

"What?" A muffled and slightly annoyed voice came from within. Harry took this to mean 'come in', and opened the door.

Deb, who was sitting at the desk, swivelled her chair round and looked at him questioningly. "Can I help you?"

"You left this downstairs," Harry said bluntly, dropping the magazine on the bed and turning to leave, not in the mood for a conversation with the chimaera that was, supposedly, his sister.

"Harry, wait!" He turned in surprise.

"Yeah?"

"Um, can I ask you something?" She fidgeted slightly.

"Sure." He shrugged, coming back in and pulling the door to behind him. "What?"

She took a deep breath and went straight to the point. "You know you and Draco? Well, um, when did you realise you like, _liked _him? I mean, like, really? How did you know it was, like, real? And not just a stupid passing thing?"

"I don't know really." Harry frowned. "I guess it just got kind of stronger until I started to feel like I had to do something. Why?"

"No reason," Deb said quickly, but her voice was fractionally higher than normal, and Harry began to guess that something was up.

"Seriously. There must be a reason!"

She glared at him venomously, and muttered so quietly Harry barely heard, "I think I fancy a girl."

"Hmm." He said in surprise. "Um, does she feel the same?"

"Holy crap! How the hell would I know?" She stared at him in amazement.

"Well are you going to do anything about it?"

Deb snorted. "Hell no!"

"O…K… Now can I ask you something?"

She nodded.

"What did you do to your hand?" Harry gestured to her bandage.

Deb's face immediately iced over and she said tonelessly, "None of your business. You can go now."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "Seriously, what did you do?"

She snapped. "Fuck off Harry! It's none of your business!"

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_A/N: So Harry has someone else's problems to deal with as well. Mwahaha. Review! Do you like the fluff (partially pinched from Bridget Jones's Diary) and the subplot? Tell me! (And do you like Melfin?)_


	11. Sugar Fairy Turns Sour

**Chapter 11**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N:I probably should have written this note before the actual chapter, but oh well, live and learn. Here it is, one chapter, as requested. It's not great, in fact I think it's rather boring. I was running low on ideas. But I've been beta-ing as well, and I've got some new stories coming up soon. I'm planning another AU, a seventh-year one-shot, and a post-Hogwarts one. But fear not, progress will continue with this fic. _

_I am so sorry about not replying to individuals, but I really don't have time. I have to email off my beta-ed chapters and I might start one of my new fics. I've been working all day as the first bit of my vital Chemistry coursework is due on Wednesday, and I have a pile of stuff to learn for Spanish. Individual replies will be back next chapter, and keep an eye out for any new stuff with my name on it! _

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On Saturday morning, Harry couldn't face breakfast. Pretty much as soon as he and Draco had got together, he'd realised that he would have to break up with Melfin. Again. This was getting to be something of a habit.

He called her after lunch. He had toyed with doing the job over the phone, but decided that was too cruel, even in circumstances as dangerous as these. So he arranged to meet her in town.

He was exactly on time and found Melfin already there. She looked delighted to see him, and he felt a stab of guilt. No one deserved this. But he had to do it. He fixed his words in his mind and walked up to her.

"Hi Melfin."

"Hi Harry!"

Before she could say anything, he started to speak. "I, um, I wanted to talk to you. I'm really, really sorry about this; I hoped I'd never have to do it, but I… I don't think we should see each other any more. I hope we can stay friends, I really do." He finished his speech and looked up to see her reaction.

"Harry Potter, you unimaginable prick!" She yelled in response, loud enough to get some very weird looks from people walking past. He cringed. Maybe an amicable split had been too much to hope for. "I can't BELIEVE you're doing this again! That's the LAST time I give you a second chance! You've had more second chances than… than… I can't even think of the WORDS!" She turned to go, still looking furious. Then she added, with a hint of sadism, "By the way, I heard your sister's turned schizo. Have fun with that."

"Do whatever you want to me, but don't you DARE insult my family!" Harry shouted back. "Leave my sister out of this!"

"Ooh, touched a nerve, have I?" She spat viciously.

Harry stared at her and spoke in a low voice. "You bitch. Forget being friends. Forget I ever spoke to you or looked at you. Right now I wouldn't touch you with a bargepole. You might want to fix those issues of yours before you try returning to the civilised world." With that, he turned and left Melfin fuming in the middle of the sidewalk.

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He tried to act normal for the rest of the day, but couldn't suppress his temporary tendency to get annoyed at the smallest things. After dinner, he planned to stay in his room in order to avoid biting everyone's heads off whenever they spoke to him. Then he remembered that he'd lent one of his CDs to Deb, and decided to go and get it back.

She wasn't in her room, but he didn't feel like conversation so decided to risk her wrath by going in to get it. After all, what could happen?

He found the CD on the desk, picked it up and was about to leave when he saw something, in a corner of the desk, that caught his eye. He looked closer and saw a small collection of items, namely a candle and some matches, a small drawing of a girl's face, a pair of scissors and a quite long, battered piece of string that looked oddly like it had been washed several times and was nearing the end of its natural life.

"What the hell…?" He muttered as he looked at the objects. He felt the temptation to just find out what was going on. All he had to do was glance at her diary… He knew she kept one. He also knew he could find it, if he had the inclination.

Or he could tell Lily. Then she could find out the whole story. Deb would be more likely to talk to her. He could try himself, but that had already failed once, and there was nothing to prove that she would be any more forthcoming now.

Harry made his decision, and quickly started thinking about how he could do it.

That was it! He'd put the CD back, bring the vacuum cleaner up here (the room hadn't been vacuumed for a while, so his plan was plausible), and tell Deb to stay out for a bit while he vacuumed. He helped with the chores occasionally, so it was believable. He could then vacuum really quickly, and leave the machine on while he found (and looked at) the diary.

He wouldn't have done it if it wasn't for one single thing. Running through his mind were the words 'My sister knows you're gay – What? How does _she _know?'. If she'd been nosy enough to find out about Draco for no apparent reason, he was well within his rights to do this for her own good. He wouldn't dream of it if he wasn't worried about her.

He put the CD back, went downstairs and told Deb he was vacuuming her room. She gave him a somewhat forced smile from her place on the couch, and he exited with the vacuum cleaner.

He did the real work quickly, and left the machine running with the door closed as he looked around. Then he smiled slightly. Poor, trusting girl… the diary was on her bedside cabinet. It had no lock; it was just a simple notebook-type design. He opened it to about a week before and started looking for a clue of what was going on.

Two minutes later, he shut the book, none the wiser. There were a few fleeting references to the girl she'd told him about, who he gathered was called Sam. But nothing else.

Maybe there was nothing else. Maybe he was just blowing this out of proportion. After all, teenage girls are inclined to be ratty at the best of times. He'd got a bit irritable before he and Draco had got together, and nothing else serious had been bothering him then.

He put the diary back exactly as he'd found it, switched off the vacuum cleaner and took it back downstairs, taking the CD with him. He'd just have to keep his ears to the ground.

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_A/N: Again, I'm sorry for not replying to all your lovely reviews. But keep on reviewing (please)! Nothing cheers me up on a vile Monday morning like reading my emails and seeing your reviews in my inbox. And please, if you think you know what's going on with Deb, don't be all mysterious – tell me! Promise I won't laugh :-) Farewell for another week, and don't forget to review!_


	12. The Loser Spy

**Chapter 12**

_A/N: Hi guys, long time no see. I admit I've been pretty lazy in leaving it so long to update, but I've had loads of work, and other stuff going on that's making big demands on my mental capacity. So here (at last) is chapter 12. If you want to berate me for being so damn slow, then review, I won't be mad :-) Seriously, as ever, comments welcome. _

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It was 3.40pm on Monday October 25th, and Harry was in a closet in more ways than one. He and Draco had struck on a highly original way to pass the time before their rehearsal started; the need to waste a few minutes was why they were currently hiding in a storage closet on Minster High's main corridor, making out.

'God, I could really get used to this,' Draco thought. Truth was, he already had. Kissing Harry felt like the most natural thing in the world now. Sadly, the secrecy was necessary anyway.

Harry pulled away to glance at his watch. "We should go…"

Smiling, Draco completely ignored this, and kept kissing him. It was a further minute or so before Harry had the opportunity or the inclination to pull away again. "Seriously, we should. Trelawney won't be happy if her Romeo turns up late."

Draco pouted. "Do we _have _to?"

Harry swatted him on the arm, grinning. "Yes, we do."

After they cautiously left the closet, they hurried down the quiet corridors and over to the hall, where they found pretty much everyone else there already.

"Where were you guys?" Mione asked when they reached her and Ron.

"Um… Had to get something from my locker," Draco ad-libbed quickly, shooting a glance at Harry.

Then Miss Trelawney called for quiet, and there was no more chance to talk.

After the rehearsal finished, the four friends planned to head back to Ron's house, as his mom was coming to pick his sister up from badminton club, so could give them a lift.

They met Ginny outside the sports block. "Hey," she said, swinging her bag up onto her shoulder. "Good rehearsal?"

"Yeah, OK," Ron answered. "Mione, can I have a word?" She nodded, and he led her across the driveway and behind a hedge.

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Christ! Make-out session. Could they _be _any more obvious?" She paused. "Actually, there was something I wanted to speak to you about, Harry. Um, it's about Deb…"

Harry caught her drift. "It's OK, Draco knows basically what's going on."

"OK," Ginny bit her lip briefly, wondering how to phrase what she wanted to say. "Do you know about… um, her 'special someone'?"

Harry gave her an odd look. "Starts with S and is a problem due to being a G?"

Ginny nodded. "She didn't tell you who it was herself, did she?" She sounded reproachful.

Harry grimaced. "In those words, no. I found out by… doing something I shouldn't have."

"Diary?" At Harry's look of surprise, she added, "Well where else? I'm not stupid. Does she know you know who it is?"

"No. Why are you asking me this?"

"She thinks you're getting a bit too suspicious. She told me pretty much everything, including that she knows you've been in her room, which means she knows you saw the stuff on her desk."

"Shit," Harry bit his lip. "Is she really pissed at me?"

"No, she just thinks you might have… made assumptions. I mean, she realises what it must look like…"

Harry couldn't stop himself rolling his eyes at this comment. "Well, duh!"

Ginny stopped short and looked him in the eye. "She's not hurting herself."

Harry's eyes widened. "She thought I thought that?"

"Well, didn't you?"

He blushed. "Well, I…"

Ginny folded her arms. "I rest my case. There's a simple explanation for all that stuff, you know. And maybe you should try talking to her next time rather than spying." With that, she walked off down the drive, leaving Harry speechless.

"I… Bu…" He turned to Draco, who was standing beside him with his eyebrows raised. "What?"

"Well, she's got you there," the blond said fairly. "And at least now you know nothing's wrong."

"Yeah, except that my sister thinks I'm a spying loser!"

"Yeah, well, just think of it as vengeance for her reading that website about me."

Harry stared at him. "No shit. That is _exactly _what I thought when I did it."

Draco shrugged, smirking mischievously. "I can read your mind, Potty Wee Potter."

A/N: Sorry about the shortness, but I really couldn't think where to go from here. Any ideas are more than welcome!


	13. Pumpkin of Doom

**Chapter 13**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine. Some bits are from Shakespeare._

_A/N: Again, dudes, my apologies. Right now I'm doing this when I could, and probably should, be doing ICT work. But let's face it, this makes me (and hopefully you) happy, while doing that work would make me miserable and my sadistic twit of an ICT teacher happy, so it's really quite an easy choice._

_Thanks for the reviews and ideas, keep them coming! In this chapter, a rehearsal, Halloween, a charming recipe, and even a little slash… if you're good. ;-)_

_A/N 2: It's a couple of weeks since I wrote the above; it's taken me this long to get my motivation for posting (looks guilty). Anyhoo, enjoy._

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"_Romeo, the love I bear thee can afford  
__No better term than this: thou art a villain." _

"_Tybalt, the reason that I have to love thee  
__Doth much excuse the appertaining rage  
__To such a greeting. Villain am I none;  
__Therefore farewell, I see thou knowest me not." _

"_Boy-" _Harry started his line, but was distracted as Draco winked at him. No one else saw the gesture, and it threw him off balance. He struggled on, but the second's hesitation diverted his mind from what he was saying. "_-this shall not excuse-" _Draco's austere glare was beginning to slip, and a hint of a smile was playing with his features. "-_the injuries  
__That thou hast done me, therefore turn and draw." _

Draco was making a valiant effort to get his face back into its previous angry look, but he was fighting a losing battle and they both knew it. He carried on with his line anyway: "_I do protest I never injuried thee  
__But love thee better than thou canst devise-" _He was really losing control now. His voice was faltering helplessly, and the growing trace of amusement on Harry's face was not helping. His words became less coherent as he fought against his temptation to laugh.

Harry was watching his expression, and at last he cracked, stifling a laugh. Then Draco caught his eye, and they were both off.

Miss Trelawney looked utterly nonplussed as she watched her Romeo and Tybalt dissolving in helpless laughter. "Boys? Is there a problem?"

She tried several times to find out what was going on, but in the end gave up and moved on to Juliet's next monologue.

By the end of the rehearsal, the weather was thoroughly horrible.

"I don't see why they have to bring us in on Sundays anyway," Ron complained as the four of them stood by a window in the hall. "Half the weekend gone, and now we have to get home through this!"

Mione shrugged. "Look on the bright side; at least there might be fewer trick-or-treaters around tonight if the weather's bad."

They contemplated the torrential rain in silence for a minute or two, until Draco broke the quiet. "Well, if none of us've got the money for a cab, we're going to have to walk. I don't think it's going to let up, so we might as well go now."

Harry reluctantly shouldered his bag. "I guess you're right. So what do you reckon; how many trick-or-treaters are you expecting tonight?"

Draco zipped up his jacket, picked up his stuff and answered: "Not too many. We don't have heaps of little kids around our street, so we shouldn't get too many interruptions."

Mione grinned at this. "Good thing we're going to yours then. Last year we had loads. A few of them even put an egg through our mailbox; my mom had a fit."

As they talked, they headed for the door, and as Mione finished speaking, Ron tentatively opened it. With a collective intake of breath, they stepped out into the downpour.

Half an hour later, they stumbled through Draco's front door, yanked it shut and stood, dripping.

Mione glanced at Draco and burst out laughing. "God, you look like a drowned rat!"

Draco's jaw dropped indignantly. "Yeah, like you look any better!"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Why don't we just admit it? We all look pretty stupid. But Mione, seriously, your hair is a bit whoa."

Mione's hands flew to her hair, a look of deep concern settling on her face. She turned and started to ascend the stairs at speed. "The bathroom's the door at the top of the stairs!" Draco called after her with a wicked grin. "Ron, do you want the other one?"

Ron shrugged. "OK. Where is it?"

"Second right." Draco watched him disappear up the stairs and round the corner, then turned to Harry. He was about to speak when the doorbell rang. He glanced out briefly and smirked. "Trick-or-treaters. Come on." With that, he grabbed Harry's hand and dragged him through to the kitchen. He opened the fridge and pulled out a clear plastic container. He handed it to Harry and walked back through to the hall. His smirk broadened as Harry stared into the container for a moment, then looked up again.

"Dray, are you actually giving them sweets?" In the box were five little pumpkins, bright orange with faces on them.

Draco shrugged evasively. "Maybe." He opened the door and smiled widely at the assembled small children.

"Trick or treat!" They called in unison.

Still smiling in a friendly way, Draco addressed their spokes-witch, who was standing a little forward from the others. "Nice costumes, guys! Here you go. Don't eat them all at once." He handed them the box. They giggled delightedly, and departed, led by Frankenstein's monster. Draco gently closed the door and turned to meet Harry's suspicious frown.

"What was in those things?"

The blond's smirk grew even wider. "Lovely little recipe. I learnt it off this girl at my old school; she used it on her ex-boyfriend and he said it made him sick."

Harry's eyebrows shot up. "If it poisons them, I'm leaving you."

Draco snorted. "Relax. All they are is grated cheese rolled into a ball with orange marmalade, coated in turmeric and with faces iced on. None of it was past its use by date. And anyway, they said trick _or_ treat; I never said it was a treat."

Harry's face gave way to an amused smile. "You're evil."

Draco sighed dramatically. "I know. It's one of my best qualities." There came from upstairs the distinct sound of doors opening and closing. "Sounds like Ron's out of the bathroom. You can go get changed now. I'll go in my room."

When Harry came out of the bathroom five minutes later, he stepped across the landing and knocked gently on Draco's door.

"Come in."

He opened it and walked in, but was stopped in his tracks by what he saw.

Draco raised an eyebrow at his reaction. "What? I just haven't got round to putting on a T-shirt yet, OK?" His smirk peaked again, and he strolled over to the door. He poked his head out and listened. Harry joined him, and they heard muffled giggling coming from the far bathroom. Draco pulled a face. "Wow, they're a very… obvious couple, aren't they?" He drew his head back in and shut the door. Then he turned to Harry, a mischievous look on his face. "Bet we can be quieter…" He fell silent for a moment, and revelled in the bright flush that spread over Harry's features.

At last Harry's blush died down, and he smiled back. "You think so?"

Draco nodded, still smirking as he moved closer.

Harry grinned wickedly. "I think you'd have trouble being quiet for long…"

"Oh yeah?" Draco asked defiantly.

Harry didn't reply, instead going for the tickling option. Within a minute, Draco was flopped on the bed, squeaking for mercy. Grinning at his obvious victory, Harry stopped tickling and moved back slightly.

Draco immediately took advantage of this, and rolled them both over, pinning Harry down. This time, neither of them blushed, or laughed. Somehow, it wasn't funny any more.

Harry found he could move slightly, as Draco was definitely the lighter of the two of them. However, he had no real desire to change the situation, and he gave no objection when Draco's lips fell to meet his. He wrapped his arms around the blond boy and surrendered to the moment.

They kissed like that for a while, and then Harry felt light fingers tugging at his T-shirt. Draco sat up slightly, and he slid it off. Then Draco relaxed again, and they carried on.

After a while, natural equality asserted itself, and they ended up side by side. Every touch was like fire and water all at once, and neither of them wanted the moment to end.

Draco could hardly breathe. The overwhelming intensity of being with Harry like this was incredible, and sent his mind into a helpless whirl of emotion. He ran his hands gently over the smooth skin of the dark-haired boy's lightly muscled upper body, enjoying the tingling sensation as light fingers skimmed over his own. He felt more stirred up than he ever had before, and he could feel from the strong softness of Harry's kiss that he wasn't alone.

Indeed, Harry was enjoying himself too. The mere presence of the boy he loved, this close, worked magic on his mind. He ran his fingers through the silky blond strands of Draco's hair, relishing the coolness against his skin in sharp contrast with the consuming warmth affecting the rest of him.

It felt like only a second had passed when suddenly Draco felt a draft on the bare skin of his back. He moved away from Harry and turned in dread. Sure enough, Mione and Ron were standing in the doorway.

_Love it or leave it; you can't understand._

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_A/N: Whoo! I wrote some decent slash! Go me. Hope you like. Cookies to anyone who can tell me where the line at the end comes from. _


	14. Melfingate

**Chapter 14**

_A/N: I started this a while ago, and I'm sorry about the wait. But hey, genius takes time :-) Anyways, thankies to all who reviewed, love you all, yes the line was from Thankyou for the Venom. I LOVE My Chemical Romance! _

_I'm in a very good mood. _

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Disappointed at the sudden loss of contact, Harry opened his eyes and, following Draco's line of sight, realised what was wrong. And it was wrong all right, very wrong.

Mione looked like she was about to faint, and Ron… well, it looked like an explosion was imminent. Harry gulped nervously and reached for his T-shirt, yanking it back on while trying to look decorous and as if he had not just been caught in the middle of the biggest make-out session of his life. He chanced a look at Draco, whose expression was one of thinly veiled terror.

"Um…" Draco managed to break the silence. Sadly, his words – well, word – was not one of consequence.

Mione was leaning on the door, blinking furiously. "Guys, I don't want any unnecessary details, but were you two… doing what we thought you were doing?"

Harry ran a hand uncomfortably through his hair. "In so far as to say that we were, ah, well yes, probably…" He trailed off helplessly.

Draco gave a tiny sigh of impatience. "Kissing. Yes we were."

Ron still hadn't spoken. Harry looked nervously over at him. His expression of rage had faded, but as he caught Harry's eye he muttered: "I think I'm gonna be sick." With that, he grabbed Mione's hand and fled the room.

Harry dropped his head into his hands. He felt the mattress move slightly as Draco sat down next to him again. "Are you OK?"

Harry took a deep breath. "Nope, I'm pretty shit actually, and yourself?"

Draco said nothing. He couldn't think of anything to say.

They sat in silence for a minute or two, until they heard the front door slam. Draco stood up and went onto the landing. Seconds later, he came back into the bedroom, his expression sad. "They've gone."

Harry squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, then lifted his head. "I'm going to go to the bathroom." He slowly stood up, and left the room.

After he shut the door, he stood in front of the basin and stared into the mirror. Why had this gone so wrong? What the hell was Ron's problem? He stayed there for a while, just looking at his reflection.

When he finally tired of wallowing in the moment, he left the bathroom and went back across the landing. He stepped through the door and saw Draco sitting in the corner, gazing at his laptop screen. Harry walked lightly across the room and looked over Draco's shoulder. When he saw the display, clear as day in 256-bit colour, his heart did a backflip and threatened to leave his body through his nose.

At last, the blond boy spoke. "Get out."

Harry's eyes were fixed on the screen. "Bu-"

He could see Draco's face reflected on the screen. His eyes were shut tight, and his face looked as if it was about to crack. His voice rose as he spoke again. "Get. The fuck. Out."

Harry's knees nearly gave out at the sound of the rage in Draco's voice. At last, he spun round, grabbed his bag, and left. Minutes later, he was on the sidewalk, heading for home, unable to believe what he had just seen. On the computer screen, he had seen himself. And Melfin. Kissing. If it had been someone else in the picture, he would have believed it as unshakeable evidence. But him and Melfin? He hadn't. He wouldn't. But Draco thought he had.

Fighting back a wave of emotions, he broke into a run. He didn't need this right now.

Hell followed: three and a half weeks of absolute hell.

It was on November 25th, Thanksgiving, when something finally happened to take his mind off Draco, the boy he loved, the boy who hadn't spoken to him since the Melfin pictures.

Literally, Draco had not said a word to him. He had just outright blanked him. When Harry tried to talk to him, he walked away. When Harry called him, he hung up. Notes were shredded. Messages were ignored.

In the evening of Thursday the 25th, Harry found his sister hanging around outside his room. "Hey Deb, what's up?"

She raised one eyebrow. "I'm surprised you haven't heard."

He rolled his eyes. "In case you haven't noticed, on one's talking to me, so who'd tell me? So what is it?"

She shrugged. "I'm out."

"You're what?"

"Out. People know I'm bi."

"You're bi?"

"God, Harry! Get with the program! I'm surprised Draco didn't tell you before you two… y'know."

Harry gaped. "Draco knew?"

"Well yeah. I mean, I knew he was gay first, so share and share alike."

"Jesus, you've probably spoken to him more than I have lately!"

"Well when did you last speak to him?"

"November 1st."

She nodded. "Yeah, looks like I have. I spoke to him yesterday. He wants you back, by the way. Turns out the pictures were a fake. Goyle did them."

"You're shitting me! Why hasn't he spoken to me then?"

"Hmm, well he kicked you out of his house into a rainstorm, left you friendless, and ignored you for three weeks. Why do you think, Einstein? He's scared."

Harry ran a hand through his hair, blinking in amazement. He turned and opened his bedroom door, and walked in. Deb followed him.

He sat down on the bed and frowned at his sister. "So you're definitely into girls, then?"

"Hell, yeah! I mean, is the sky blue? Are you in love with Draco Malfoy?"

Harry glared at her with an exasperated sigh. "If all you're gonna do is make barbed comments about me and Draco, you can leave now."

Deb shrugged. "Suit yourself. I've got stuff to do anyway." And with that, she left, shutting the door gently behind her.

Harry was reeling. Life was getting more and more weird. And he had thought that Deb had issues before; right now, she seemed saner than he had felt in months. She was right anyway; he was in love with Draco, and he missed him more than he had ever thought possible.

But he couldn't just go up to Draco and ask him to take him back. He'd look like a fool, and what if Deb was wrong? What if he said no? After all, Draco had been prepared to believe the photos, and he had never even had a chance to deny it.

He groaned in frustration. Love was so confusing. One minute you were flying, but it only took the tiniest hitch and suddenly you were in the gutter. One day you couldn't breathe for happiness, the next you could be crying in a corner, humming to yourself to block out the world.

Harry could barely drag himself out of bed on the Friday morning, but he managed it. He sat through homeroom and classes alone, as he was now used to.

At lunch, the usual walls went up. People sat in huddles in classrooms or the cafeteria, and again he was out on his own.

And so it was that he found himself walking along the edge of the sports field, contemplating the crappier side of life, when he saw something that threw aside all belief.

Round the back of the gym, leaning on the wall, stood a couple. But not a conventional couple. Oh no, because this couple consisted of two people well-known to Harry, both of whom had recently given him lectures on his personal life, both of whom were in the year below him, and both of whom were girls.

As he stood in shock, the redhead smiled and brushed a strand of hair out of the brunette's face, then… oh god, he shouldn't be watching this. This was private, icky stuff. Private, icky stuff involving his… he had to find Ron.

He was glad to turn away, and he forced himself to maintain a calm walk as he headed back for his homeroom.

All the way there, he was wondering what he was going to say. But when he got through the door, he found it was easier to just grab Ron by the arm and start walking back with him in tow. The ginger boy struggled briefly, but Harry fixed him with a death glare and muttered: "For god's sake, gay germs aren't infectious. There's something you have to see."

Eventually, he was standing back at the corner of the gym block. He peered round the corner at the back wall, before turning back and nodding to Ron. He gestured round the corner. "Enjoy."

There was a slight sadistic pleasure in this, he realised, as Ron tentatively stuck his head round.

Then the sadism really kicked in as Ron stumbled backwards, his hand over his mouth in shock. "Shit," he mumbled, sounding nauseated, "this time I really am going to be sick."

Harry stood there calmly while Ron was retching in a nearby shrub, and was waiting when the other boy stood up and came over. "Is everyone going gay?" His voice was a hoarse whisper.

Harry finally lost patience with him. "No, Ron, most of the world is comfortably straight! And half the reason for that is because gays get so much absolute _shit _from the rest of you! I'm sick of it! Being gay does not mean I'm going to jump you, OK? When I was straight, were you worried about me fancying Mione? Do you fancy every girl alive? No, because that's not how it works! I was the third wheel when you and Mione got together, and hey, I was sick of that, but things just got a hell of a lot worse when you guys freaked. True friends don't do that!" He finished his tirade and took several deep breaths.

Ron looked slightly afraid. "Dude, I didn't know it was that bad," he managed at last.

"Yeah, well it was. And go us for totally getting distracted from the matter in hand."

Ron paled. "Oh god, yeah. What do we do?"

Harry shrugged, a slight smile playing on his face. "Congratulate them?"

"That's my sister!" Ron choked in a strangled voice. "I should be _congratulating_ her for making out with another girl?"

"Well in case you hadn't noticed," Harry answered icily, "that other girl is _my _sister, and you don't see me freaking out."

Ron didn't seem able to take any more being understanding, so they silently decided it was time to head back, before the girls realised they'd been there.

He endured last period, glad for another distraction, even if it was his sister doing stuff a brother should never have to see.

At the end of the day, he was standing by his locker, rifling through his books, when a hand tapped him on the shoulder. Out of the corner of his eye, he recognised those fingers, and that touch. He turned round, his heart performing an uncanny leap of hope.

Draco's eyes, half-hidden behind his hair, were full of pain and apology. He seemed barely able to speak, but he whispered quickly: "I'm so sorry I know the pictures were faked I'm an idiot can you forgive me?"

Harry's heart melted. "I…" he didn't know quite what to say.

After a long moment, Draco's eyes glistened. "Sorry. Stupid question." He turned away and started walking.

Harry knew he had to do something. This was his last chance. He glanced around, noting that there were about three other people in the corridor, all quite far away. He swung on his bag, slammed his locker and raced after the blond boy.

He caught up quickly, and stepped in front of Draco. His face was heartbreakingly downcast, and he looked like he could cry any minute.

Harry put out a hand and lifted his chin so that their eyes met. Then he whispered: "I forgive you. I love you."

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_A/N: OK, the idealistic fluffy love stuff is courtesy of my current mood and situation, and a bit of it was inspired by my friend and fellow author Xandria Nirvana (check out her stuff, it's great)._

_Love you all, please review. _


	15. Kippers! II

**Chapter 15**

_A/N: Hi guys, I know it's been a while (well, several months), but here is a slashy, fluffy chapter._

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After their reconciliation, neither Harry nor Draco wanted to be parted from each other. Three and a half weeks had been too much already, so Harry jumped at the chance to stay over.

They left school together, reluctantly parting so that Harry could go home to get his things. He remained silent throughout the ride home, only speaking to ask Lily's permission to go to Draco's for the night. That was granted; she seemed pleased that their friendship was repaired, and clearly trusted him when it came to his being in overnight proximity to his boyfriend.

Harry was in his room, throwing things into a bag, when Deb came in. He looked up with a sigh. "Have you forgotten how to knock?"

She shrugged. "I take it you two made up." It wasn't a question. "I knew it'd happen. You're made for each other."

He rolled his eyes. "Incidentally, how's Ginny?"

His question had the exact effect he had intended; Deb went bright red and answered 'casually': "She's fine, why do you ask?"

He smirked. "I went for a walk by the gym today… interesting view."

"Shit!" Her jaw dropped and she ran her hands through her hair in slight panic. "You… saw!"

Harry couldn't help a laugh. "Far more than I wanted to. But at least I didn't throw up." She shot him a quizzical look. "I fetched Ron. The sight had a far worse effect on him than me."

Deb sank to the floor and sat cross-legged. "Damn. Damn, damn, damn."

He stopped packing and sat down in front of her. "It's okay, we won't tell anyone." He paused. "Are you happy? With Ginny, I mean."

A broad smile broke out across Deb's face. "Yeah… I know how you must have felt when you got together with Draco."

"What about Sam?"

She didn't even query how he knew the name, just answered happily: "She's straight. No point wanting what you can't have. Anyway, Ginny's so much more right for me."

Harry smiled as he turned back to his bag and carried on his packing. Deb's voice reached his ears again. "Got anything special planned for tonight?"

"No," he replied quickly, but a hint of a lie crept into his tone, and Deb noticed it.

"I know that voice," she said suspiciously. He glanced over his shoulder just in time to see her eyebrows shoot up, her mouth drop slightly open, and her face blanche. "Harry, please tell me you're not going to… um… 'make things up to him'. Please."

He battled to keep his face from colouring up; she had guessed what was in his head. He knew it wasn't a sensible idea, but he couldn't help thinking it. He was a teenager, after all, and in love. "What?" He responded defensively. "Are you telling me you haven't ever considered that? With Ginny, maybe?" Pink dots appeared in her cheeks, and he knew he had struck home.

"That's not the point," Deb retorted. "For god's sake, Harry, don't do anything stupid. I don't care if you both want it, you're not that old, don't let your heart rule your head."

He stood up, getting angry now. "You're my little sister, Deb! I caught you playing tonsil hockey with someone on the school sports field today; it should be me lecturing you!" Suddenly, he noticed another element of what she had said. "'If we both want it'? What's Dray told you?"

She lifted her head resolutely. "I'm not telling you anything else."

He shrugged. "I know enough. Please leave my room now."

She left unwillingly, making one last plea of "Don't do anything you'll regret!" before he shut the door.

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At eight o' clock, he knocked on Draco's front door. The blond let him in almost immediately. "Mom left half an hour ago," he said quickly, tugging Harry indoors, shutting the door, and kissing him in the way Harry had missed so much. He reciprocated straight away, dropping his bag and readjusting happily to the familiar sensation. He slipped his arms around Draco's slim frame, abandoning conscious thought for the long moment it took them to run out of air.

When that finally happened, they drew slowly apart, and Harry whispered: "I missed you, angel." He traced his fingers down the side of Draco's face, barely daring to breathe. The blond shut his eyes with the sweetest smile imaginable. "I missed you too."

At last, Harry picked up his bag again, and they went upstairs to put it in Draco's room. They went together as they could barely bear to let go of each other for a second. Eventually, they sat down on the couch, still touching. Draco swung his feet up onto the seat and rested his head on Harry's shoulder. "Did I tell you yet how sorry I am for what happened?"

"Yes," Harry answered softly. "And I forgive you. Completely. Because I'm in love with you."

Draco's breathing caught in his throat. "You haven't said that before."

"Maybe it just took me time to realise."

"Maybe." Draco lifted his head so he could look Harry in the eye. "I'm in love with you too."

They shared another, briefer kiss, before Draco remembered his duty as host. "Would you like a drink?"

"That'd be nice," Harry murmured. "What have you got?"

Draco smiled mysteriously. "Surprise." He stood up and disappeared into the kitchen. When he re-emerged, he held his hands behind his back for a moment, before revealing what he was holding and saying gleefully: "Lambrini! It's the cheap tart's version of Lambrusco, or so I hear." He sat back down and filled two glasses. Grinning, he lifted his with his little finger sticking out in a parody of class, and said demurely: "Cheers."

They clinked glasses and drank. It wasn't bad stuff. After a moment, Harry stifled a laugh. Draco gave him a questioning look. "What's funny?"

Harry sighed. "It's just the remarkable appropriateness. Straight, macho guys drink beer. And what do we drink? 'Cheap tart's Lambrusco'."

By nine o' clock, they were both a little tipsy. It had taken about three bottles, and it was only mild, but it was there. Under normal circumstances, for instance, they would not have chosen to put on Meatloaf's _Dead Ringer For Love _and do the conga round the living room. In these circumstances, though, they did. Subsequently, they ended up singing the words at each other and doing disco moves until the leg of the coffee table presented an obstruction and they fell onto the couch.

For Draco, it felt like the music faded into silence as green eyes stared down at him. Anticipation was beginning to get the better of him when Harry dragged them both upright and started dancing again.

Several songs later, they were slightly out of breath, and both looking a little green around the gills. It was the dancing that did it, they concluded after an unpleasant few minutes in the bathroom and a large amount of water ingestion.

Only an hour and a half after the commencement of the conga-ing, they went upstairs, Draco to his room, Harry to the bathroom, and got changed for bed.

When Harry emerged from the bathroom and went across the landing, he found Draco already in bed, reading. He drew closer and looked at the cover of the book. "_Catch-22_," he read. "Good choice."

Draco looked up, smiling. "I thought you would have read it. I love it; it's the only book I know that manages to be funny and totally intelligent at the same time. It really makes you think, doesn't it?"

Harry nodded pensively, sitting down on the bed. "You never look at authority the same way again."

Draco closed the book and slid it onto his nightstand. "You feeling better?"

"Yeah, much," Harry answered. "I don't think the dancing was wise, but I do feel better now."

Draco continued to watch him for a moment, then said: "So are… are you coming in with me?"

Harry looked levelly back at him. "Do you want me to?"

In answer, the blond slid back the duvet and moved over. Harry settled next to him. There was a comfortable silence before Draco slowly moved closer to him, and their lips met. The kiss was short and chaste. Afterwards, they held each other's gaze for several seconds, as if asking for permission. Whatever it was they were seeking in each other's eyes, they got it; the next kiss was stronger, showing more of the feelings shared.

Before they knew it, they were clinging together, skin on skin, breathing hard. Harry's fingertips traced reverent swirls down Draco's face. "I love you, angel."

"I love you too." Draco shifted close again, sliding his arms down to Harry's waist and kissing him softly. Harry returned the kiss, letting his fingers trail down the other boy's spine as he revelled in their closeness.

All advice had gone out of the window. The two of them were firmly ensnared in the moment, until at last things became too serious to deal with in silence.

As another kiss ended, Draco turned his head away and whispered: "I don't think we should… I think we should stop."

Harry sighed. "I know." He smiled gently. "I don't think either of us is ready."

"No." Draco rested his forehead against Harry's, returning the smile. "But out of the whole world… you should know that I'm saving myself for you. Forever."

Harry's heart melted. "And I don't want anyone else."

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_A/N: Press review button and make me happy! Pweese! _


	16. Isn't That A Remedy For Choking?

**Chapter 16**

_A/N: God, it's been a while. Is anyone still reading this? I hope so. My mojo deserted me, but I'm going to do my best to not give up on this fic. This chapter's been in progress for some time now; I've just added a bit more on from my initial attempt. I know a lot of people have me on Author Alert and this story on Story Alert, so I want to thank them for that and say I hope they haven't given up on it. Love you all, enjoy!_

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It took Harry a few seconds to work out what had woken him; at last he realised his cell phone was ringing. He gently extricated himself from Draco's arms and got up. He rifled briefly in his bag, pulled out the phone and answered it. "Yeah, who is it?"

"It's me," said the voice on the other end. Harry rolled his eyes; it was his sister.

"What do you want?" he snapped, keeping his voice down as he saw, out of the corner of his eye, that Draco was waking up.

"Just wanted to see how you were…"

"Like hell you did! You're checking up on me, aren't you?"

She took a moment to respond. "What happened last night? Did you, or didn't you?"

Before he had a chance to answer her, Draco rolled over and murmured: "Harry, come back to bed…"

Harry almost heard Deb's jaw drop. "You did! Harry, you idiot…"

Draco opened his eyes and looked over at Harry. "Who's on the phone?"

He cupped his hand over the receiver. "Deb. Wants to know if we… last night."

Draco smirked mischievously. "Let me talk to her."

Harry nodded and cut Deb off in mid-rant: "Talk to Dray." He threw the phone to the blond, who caught it deftly and started talking.

"Hey Deb, morning. Oh, you want to know, do you? Well…" He grinned and assumed a low, purry tone. "Your brother is a _god_. Honestly, the things he did…" His grin widened as he threw the phone back to Harry. "She hung up in disgust."

Slipping the phone back in his bag, Harry smiled back. "Nice one. I can't believe how nosy she is…"

Draco frowned. "Maybe I shouldn't have done that. What if she tells your mom?"

"She won't tell mom anything," Harry replied confidently. "That is, not unless she wants mom to know about her little lunchtime session behind the gymnasium…"

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Gossip? Why was I not informed?"

Grinning, Harry sat on the edge of the bed. "Basically, I found her yesterday lunchtime, behind the gym, kissing Ginny."

The eyebrow went higher. "Little hussy. God, so much potential for taking the mick…"

Harry brushed his dark hair back out of his eyes. "I'm surprised she didn't tell you. You two talk a lot, don't you?"

"Yeah, I mean I knew she was dating Ginny, but I didn't know they were on a public display kind of level… Who saw, apart from you?"

"Ron." Harry laughed at the memory. "He actually threw up. But then he started talking to me again, so it's all good."

"You had a good day yesterday," Draco commented, slipping an arm round Harry's waist and pulling him into a horizontal hug. "First him, then me…"

Harry smiled. "Yeah, it was pretty good." He relaxed back into the hug as Draco stroked his forehead.

"Where did you get this scar?" Draco asked softly. "Saving a damsel in distress?"

Harry blushed. "Nothing that honourable. It's totally lame."

"Tell me."

"Well it was in kindergarten, the day I made friends with Ron and Mione. We all had milk and fruit, and I had a kiwi fruit. Ron tried to steal my kiwi fruit, so I poked him, and then he pushed me over and I cut my head. Mione saw it happen and she hit him for being mean to me. The three of us have been friends ever since."

Draco stifled a laugh. "You got that in a fight over kiwi fruit?"

Harry's blush grew. "I told you it was lame."

"Not entirely," Draco said, his tone betraying the fact that he was smiling. "I mean, you valiantly stood up for your right to have a kiwi fruit. My kiwi-fruit-keeping hero."

"Stop teasing me."

"Aww, baby, how could you think I was teasing you?" Draco cooed. "I love a guy who stands up for his kiwi fruit."

Harry twisted out of his embrace and stood up, pouting. "If you're going to be like that, I'm going to go shower now."

When he emerged from the bathroom half an hour later, however, Draco was dressed and was being kept company in the bedroom by a tray of breakfast. "My apology," he said with a smile when Harry came in. "I'm sorry I teased you."

Harry sat down beside him. "You're forgiven. I've never been with anyone before who'd go to this much effort over breakfast."

Draco smiled sweetly. "Well you're with me now: the perfect, loyal, breakfast-making boyfriend. And look, there's no kiwi fruit."

By now, Harry was truly charmed. "Thank you."

Draco's expression was a little surprised. "It's only breakfast."

Harry slipped an arm round his shoulders. "Not just the breakfast. Thank you for everything." Surprising himself, he gently removed the tray from the blond boy's hands and set it on the floor, before leaning in and kissing him softly. After a second or two, he felt arms circle round him as Draco's pulse rose in response to his own. They carried on for a couple of minutes, until Draco drew back, reached to the floor and picked something up off the tray. "Close your eyes." Harry obeyed. Shortly after, he felt something brush against his lips, and instinctively opened his mouth.

Draco laughed softly. "Now can you identify this taste?" He popped something into Harry's mouth, and the dark-haired boy chewed slowly. Suddenly he smiled as he tasted strawberry juice flowing over his tongue. Then he had an idea. He grabbed his throat and started to make gagging noises, opening his eyes and doing his best to look panicked.

"What? What is it?" Draco's look of horror was priceless.

"Strawberry…" Harry gagged, trying not to laugh. "Allergic…" He quickly got to his feet. Draco followed, seizing him from behind and attempting the Heimlich Manoeuvre. At that point, Harry turned round calmly and said: "I thought that was a remedy for choking."

Draco gaped at him, momentarily lost for words. At last he exclaimed: "You bastard! I thought you were dying; you scared the shit out of me!"

Harry sat back down, laughing. "Sorry. I couldn't resist. But I didn't mind the Heimlich Manoeuvre to be honest…" He raised one eyebrow suggestively, watching Draco blush. That earned him a gentle swat round the head.

"I don't believe you sometimes…" Draco shook his head, smiling as he sat down beside Harry. "How many guys are there who'd fake an allergic reaction just to get a little closer?"

"Hey! It wasn't an excuse; it was a trick."

"Don't take the moral high ground with me, mister smart guy. Anyway, how come your sister thought we'd… done something? What did you say to her?"

"Nothing!" Harry insisted. "She just jumped to conclusions. But she also mentioned something about 'if you both want it', so what I want to know is what _you _said to her about it."

The colour rushed into Draco's face, and he looked away. "I didn't tell her anything."

"Liar; are you saying she made it up? Sometimes I think she knows more about you than I do, so I'm inclined to trust what she said."

Draco stared at the floor. "Maybe I did say… something… about loving you, and maybe wanting to take the next step sometime in the future. I never said anything specific about last night." He looked up into Harry's eyes. "I swear."

Harry put an arm around his shoulders. "I guess this all comes down to my little sister making assumptions then."

"Yeah, I guess." Draco smiled, nudging him. "How about we forget about that and just have breakfast?"

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_A/N: See the pretty button? It means review, so please do. Muchas gracias to you all!_


	17. An Explosive Chimaera

**Chapter 17**

_A/N: Once again, it's been ages, and I'm sorry. Please keep my hit-counts up, people! Every read and every review is welcomed. _

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After he and Draco finished breakfast, Harry made a mental note to kill his sister when he got home. That situation could have been a lot more awkward thanks to her meddling. Fortunately the whole thing had turned out rather well…

He stayed at Draco's house for most of the morning, getting home shortly before twelve and going straight to Deb's room. "Come in," she called when he knocked. He opened the door and walked in, closing it after him.

"Harry," she said deadpan when she saw who it was. "I cannot believe you did that."

"Neither can I," he answered, breathing slowly to stay calm. "Though that's probably because I didn't."

She turned to look properly at him, her face betraying scepticism. "Then what was all that stuff on the phone earlier?"

Harry fought down his growing annoyance. "That was a joke. Dray just said that to wind you up."

Deb raised an eyebrow. "Including 'Harry, come back to bed'?"

He folded his arms, starting to get sick of having to justify himself. "No, that part was real. Just because we shared a bed last night does not mean we had sex."

She blushed suddenly; neither of them had been that blunt before. Harry noticed it with satisfaction – one point to him. It was a moment or two before she spoke again. "Well I'm glad to hear it. You shouldn't be doing stuff like that."

The quick reappearance of the maternal tone in her voice made him snap. "I also meant to say that after you hung up there was a rather awkward situation between me and Draco, entirely down to you. He told me he never said anything about last night either, but I didn't even know what he was thinking. And you did. That's what's bothering me; I'm sick of the fact you know my boyfriend better than I do!" His voice rose as he spoke, glaring at her fiercely. "So will you just butt out? I don't mind you and Dray being friends, but stop trying to interfere in our relationship; it's none of your goddamn business!"

For a moment she looked defeated, but his last sentence made her look straight back at him and reply angrily: "Well in case you hadn't noticed, you two wouldn't even be back together if it wasn't for me!"

"If we're as made for each other as you claim, it would have happened sooner or later! You're my little sister; I don't need a kid like you trying to fix my life when you can't even handle your own!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" she demanded.

"Don't think I don't know what you've been doing! It took me a while to realise, but I can see it now. All that stuff on your desk, the way you didn't hide it, the way Ginny stuck up for you how she did – and now you're all flippant and in love. You faked it, didn't you? That stuff was exactly what I thought it was, but you weren't using it. All along you were just trying to get Ginny, weren't you? That was the reason I didn't notice anything untoward in your diary; you didn't really want that Sam girl – she was a cover – and you weren't hurting yourself. Sure, Ginny was in there, but she was your friend, so I never thought it was anything more. Let me guess; you 'confided' in Ginny about your self-harm to make her feel sorry for you, told her not to tell anyone, and so she defended you to me! Then you got together, and all of a sudden you outed yourself after being oh-so-scared of what you were."

He could see in her eyes that he'd got it right.

"So should I tell her?" he asked innocently.

"I love her!" Deb yelled, her eyes misting over with angry tears. "And she loves me too!"

There was no going back now. "Even though you had to trick her into going out with you? I wonder why only you are out, and not her…"

He'd never seen her this angry before. "You bastard; shut up!" The tears had spilled over and were running down her face, which was pale and furious. "You know nothing! I told Ginny the truth, and she doesn't care, and I'd bet my life that we'll be out as a couple months before you and Draco are – you're such bloody cowards!"

That was it; Harry took a step forward and slapped her, seeing red. "You don't know what he's had to put up with! He had to leave his old school because of being gay; he still has nightmares about it. You're just too young to understand how this stuff works!"

Her face drained of any remaining colour as she screamed back: "Get out of my room! Fuck off and don't come back!"

"Gladly," Harry answered coldly, storming out and along the corridor to his own room. Behind him, he heard her door slam and footsteps on the stairs. Seconds later, the front door closed heavily. She'd gone. Good.

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_A/N: I'm so sorry about how short this is! But once I got to the end I just couldn't do any more. I had no idea what I was going to write until I was partway through, and a lot of dithering was involved. I also have to apologise for focusing on an OC. I know it annoys me when I read stuff that does that. _


	18. The Road To Nirvana

**Chapter 18**

_A/N: God, I'm so stuck. My mojo has left me! (crying). What do I do next? _

_A/N 2: This is going to be so bad… I have no idea what to write; I'm just trying to get something out before I go on holiday tomorrow. _

_A/N 3: And another week later… sorry for the wait. _

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By two thirty, his sister's continued absence was starting to worry Harry. They'd argued before, loads, but they had never had a row like this one. Things had never got this personal. And they'd been getting on well recently, so this had come as something of a surprise.

He knew he could probably have coped with it if Deb hadn't made that dig about him and Draco being cowards. But he couldn't take that calmly, hearing her say that about his boyfriend. He'd never really noticed it, but thinking about it now, he felt a surge of protectiveness for Draco, all because of what happened to him at his last school. He was determined to stop that happening again.

Harry glanced at his watch. It was twenty-five to three, and she still wasn't back. She'd just stormed out without telling Lily or James where she was going, and that wasn't like her.

He fought himself for a moment or two, but eventually went out to the hall, picked up the phone and dialled her cell. It was switched off. That was pretty rare too.

Okay, the time had come for action. He dialled again.

"Hello?"

"Hey Sirius, it's Harry."

"Oh, hi Harry." He noticed his godfather's voice was a little distracted. Actually, he didn't even want to think about why that might be. "What's up?"

"I just wondered if Deb's been over to yours. We had a fight and she ran out, about midday. I haven't seen her since then."

Sirius's voice suddenly focused. "No, I haven't seen her. Did she just leave?"

"Yeah, she didn't tell mom or dad where she was headed."

There was a pause. "Okay. Are you going to go look?"

"Yeah, thought I would."

"Right, you do that. We'll get the car and drive around, see if we can spot her round town."

"We?" Harry's voice took on a tone of slight puzzlement.

"Um, 'we' would be me and Remus; that okay?"

"Yeah," Harry answered. "The more eyes the better."

"Alright then, keep your cell on; I'll call you if we find her."

"I will. Thanks Sirius." Harry hung up and debated for a moment. It would be pretty unexpected if she had, but it wasn't impossible that Deb might have turned to Draco. He dialled again.

"Hello?"

"Oh, hi Izzy, is Draco there? It's Harry."

"Yeah, he is, I'll just fetch him. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything's fine thanks," he lied. No point in trying to explain things to Draco's mother at this moment in time. The phone was silent for a minute, until Draco's voice broke the quiet.

"Harry? What's up?"

"I'm sorry to call you so soon –"

"It's fine. What's wrong?"

"My sister," Harry replied a touch grimly, realising from Draco's response that she hadn't contacted him. "We had a fight when I got home. As in a really big fight, about some important things. We both said some nasty stuff, and then she ran out. She was crying, Dray, and she hasn't come home or called or anything, and I'm worried."

Draco detected the tiny hint of panic in his tone. "It's okay. Are you going to go and look for her?"

"Yeah. Sirius and Lupin are out looking already. She's probably fine, it's just…"

"It's natural to worry. I'll get my bike out and be right over."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm certain. I'm guessing that the subject of us was raised, after this morning, so I'm involved, whether you like it or not."

"Thanks."

"Not a problem. I'll be there in a bit." The line went dead and Harry put the phone down. He was beginning to wonder if he was overreacting to this. Surely he could have just told James and Lily and left it to them?

He voiced his concerns to Draco when he arrived about fifteen minutes later. The blond's reply was laced with suspicion.

"It's true, you could have done that. What did you say to her that you don't want them finding out about?"

Harry, sitting on a chair in his room, leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes. "It's not so much what I said as what I did."

Draco sat down on the floor, crossing his legs under himself. "What did you do?"

For a moment, Harry didn't reply, hiding his face behind a hand. Then he answered. "I slapped her."

"That would explain it pretty well," Draco said reflectively. "I'm guessing it was a rather unpleasant argument that made you do that."

"You know what's been going on with her and Ginny, right? All the faking and that stuff?"

Draco nodded.

"I told her I'd worked it all out. I threatened to tell Ginny that she'd been tricked."

"No need." Draco smiled in understanding. "Deb told her already."

"Yeah, she did. But it was still a sore point. She said she was still sure she and Ginny would be out before you and I were, because… she said we were cowards. That was when I hit her." Harry was now feeling thoroughly ashamed of himself.

"Well, now I get it," Draco said. "Shall we get out there and look for her?"

---

It was nearly four o' clock when they left, on account of Harry discovering that his bike tyres were under-inflated. Draco's presence was doing wonders for reducing his panic, though he was still more worried than he'd felt in ages.

They reached town and started to circle the outer streets, scanning around for any sight of her. The first time they stopped, Harry tried her cell phone again. Slowly, they made their way around most of town.

"We haven't been down there yet," Draco told him at last, pointing down a side street.

That was enough to remind Harry that Draco hadn't been living in Minster for that long; if he had he'd know about that part. "That's the roughest area here. She won't be down there."

Draco sighed. "I'd love to be idealistic like you, but she's not anywhere else around here. Sirius hasn't called you yet, and I called Ron before I came over to yours, so we know she hasn't gone to see Ginny." He paused. "I really think we should try it."

Harry looked down the road, his heart sinking. "Okay."

They turned down the street and quickly found themselves in what Harry had accurately deemed the roughest part of Minster. In this case that meant several interlinked roads with nothing but grimy bars, clubs, tattoo parlours and a couple of shops that most people of the boys' social level would avoid like the plague.

Harry was metres ahead when he heard the soft screech of brakes and turned back to see Draco stopped outside one of the bars. "Dray, what is it?"

The reply was quiet and none too cheerful. "Your sister's about 5'4", right?"

"Yeah…"

"What's she wearing?"

Harry pushed his bike back to stand beside Draco before answering: "She's got her hair in a ponytail, and she was wearing ripped jeans and a black T-shirt. Why?"

Draco just pointed. Squinting through the dirty window, Harry spotted a girl at the bar with her back to the window. Sure enough, she exactly fitted Deb's description. As he watched, she picked up what looked suspiciously like a wine glass, and drained it. "Shit, that's her. What do we do?"

"I don't know," Draco murmured with a hint of dread. "I didn't really think any further than finding where she was, did you?"

Harry shook his head. "I thought knowing her she'd be somewhere like a bookstore, you know, somewhere we could just lead her out of or let her get out by herself!"

There was silence between them for a few moments before Draco spoke again. "Call Sirius."

"What?"

Draco turned to face him. "Harry, we have two grown men helping us on this search, okay? We are not going into some skanky bar when Sirius or Lupin could do it and not risk getting lynched!"

Harry didn't even bother answering, just taking out his cell and calling Sirius. It wasn't Sirius who picked up, though.

"Harry?" Thank god for whoever invented caller ID.

"Um…" It's just a shame you can't get it on the other end of the line. "Who is…"

"Oh, sorry. It's Remus. Sirius is driving."

"Okay." This had to be the weirdest experience Harry had had since reassessing his sexuality. He was sharing a family emergency with his geography teacher… "We think we found Deb."

There was a quick muttering on the other end of the line as Lupin relayed the information. "That's great! Where?"

Harry bit his lip. "That's the problem. It's this bar on Riddler's Road."

"You're kidding."

"No, I'm not. Where are you two?"

"Not far." The businesslike tone of Lupin's voice suddenly reminded Harry of school. "We'll be right over. Don't go in."

Harry pressed End Call and looked back at Draco. "They're on their way."

Five minutes later, Sirius's car pulled up behind them. Sirius and Lupin emerged. Harry had never been so relieved to see his godfather, especially when he immediately got a grip on the situation. "She's in there, right?"

"We think so," Draco replied.

"Okay then." Sirius walked straight up to the door and went in, Remus just a few steps behind. A minute later, they reappeared, supporting Deb. "Congratulations Draco, you successfully recognised your best friend's sister from behind, in a totally incongruous location,"Sirius said, andglanced at Harry and Draco, who were both looking a little worn out from worry and excessive cycling. "Do you two want a ride?" His eyes narrowed briefly. "Actually, scrap that. Do you want to come back to mine for a while? I think Deb needs to recover." He shot a glance at her; she was looking distinctly the worse for wear.

It was only a few minutes before the bikes were fastened on the back of the car, and the five of them were all en route to Sirius's house.

Draco, who was sitting in the back seat on Deb's left, looked over the now sleeping girl at Harry. "She doesn't usually drink much, does she?"

"Nope." Harry glanced at her. "I'm not even sure it was just drink that did this. When you're emotional, half a glass can take you to Nirvana."

---

_A/N: I started this so long ago, I can't believe I finished it at last! My apologies for the dialogue and boring-ness. The focus will soon go back to Harry and Draco, and there will be more slash. I hope. On the bright side, Deb is now just another OC; the way she acts in this chapter is nothing like me, so she's no longer a self-insert. _

_Note: I'm now branching out into fanart! It will be appearing on my new LiveJournal soon. The link is in my profile. If anyone wants to see it, review or PM or something so I know whether it's worth putting it on there or not._


	19. Marinara Fantasies

**Chapter 19**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N: Well, it's been a while. This chapter has been in the pipeline for over a month now, and I sincerely apologise for the wait. First I had GCSE exams, and then my focus went from fanfiction to my original novel-in-progress. I'd like to promise that it won't happen again, but I can't honestly do that. The most I can do is say that this fic should get finished at some point in the future._

_Warnings: Mild language, slash, weirdness._

----

"Dare I ask what you two were fighting about to make her like this?"

Harry's attention snapped forward as he heard his godfather speak. "Um… just… stuff."

Sirius sighed in mock defeat. "Suit yourself, kid. Did you tell your mom when you left the house?"

"Oh crap… No, I didn't."

"God, teenagers." Sirius pulled over, stopping the engine and taking out his cell. "Lily? It's me. Have you noticed that your two emotional minefields are missing? …Harry and Debs, who else? …Yeah, they're with me; that okay? …Hmmm …D'you want me to feed them? …Alright, will do." He hung up. "She didn't even know the two of you had gone; I guess she missed the histrionics."

"Flattering." This last voice was female, and none too strong. Harry and Draco turned to the middle seat in surprise.

"I thought you were asleep."

"Dear god, state the obvious, why don't you?" Deb rolled her eyes at her brother.

"You're also pretty damn sober…"

"Well duh. I had one glass; I'm not that much of a lightweight." She quickly pre-empted Harry's next words. "And don't say you're mad at me for running, or any of that shit, because we both know…" She had suddenly noticed who was in the front passenger seat. "Um, hi, Mr Lupin… What are you doing here?"

"Having the worst 'date' of his life, I imagine," Sirius answered for him, starting the car again.

"'Date'?" Deb looked utterly bemused for a moment. Then it clicked. "Oh, er… congratulations?"

Sirius laughed. "Why thank you." The car turned back into the flow of traffic. "I told your mom I'd give you both dinner before I take you home; you okay sticking around for a while? Offer goes for you too, Draco."

----

Within twenty minutes, they were pulling into the driveway of Sirius' house on the outskirts of town. Deb hadn't said anything more; it seemed she was every bit as reluctant as Harry was to go into the specifics of their fight in front of Sirius and Lupin. But she had proved her sobriety, as she was fairly alert, if quieter than usual.

Nonetheless, as soon as they got indoors, Sirius held the back of his hand to her forehead, held up varying numbers of fingers for her to count, and made her drink a large glass of water. Then he left her in the living room with Harry and Draco while he headed into the kitchen, with Lupin following.

"Are you two going to sort this out?" Draco asked at last, bored of the two siblings shooting veiled glares at each other. After the silence had stretched out for a few more seconds, he sighed. "Fine, I'll start. Deb, I'd like you to know that I'm actually bloody insulted by what you said about us being cowards." But he only left a moment's pause before rounding on Harry. "And you shouldn't have hit her. I know you were defending my honour and all, but you're not stupid, and you're not as tame as you seem at first glance. You're not blameless in this."

There was a long pause, both of them holding back through an identical sense of pride. Harry cracked first, feeling the hint of animosity emanating from his boyfriend, and fearing reprisals if he held his silence. "Deb, I'm sorry. I was pissed off, and I said some stuff that was pretty harsh, and unfair. I know you and Ginny really do care about each other, and I shouldn't have been so nasty about it all."

"Accepted," she muttered. "I'm sorry I called you cowards, and got involved in your relationship so much. If you wanna… do stuff, it's none of my business."

"Thank you." Harry dropped his head onto the back of the couch with a sigh. "So are we cool now?"

"I guess so. I'll butt out of your relationship if you butt out of mine. Deal?"

"Deal." He looked over at her, unable to hold back a glimmer of amusement at her turn of phrase. Suddenly the atmosphere in the room was a lot more pleasant.

Smiling at last, Deb stood up. "I'm going to the bathroom. Dray, thanks for being the only rational person here."

"Well, I try."

"Sad," Harry commented after she had left the room. "She acts more like a sister to you than she ever does to me."

Draco frowned sceptically, moving down the couch to sit next to him. "Then what was all that stuff about interfering? She was only doing it because she cares about you, you know."

Harry dropped his head onto his boyfriend's shoulder, smiling. "I guess." He sighed gently as, clearly trusting the adults to stay in the kitchen for a while longer, Draco lifted one hand to stroke his hair. "So what's my reward for being grown-up about this and apologising first?"

Draco dropped a kiss in his unruly hair, smirking as he said the first thing to pop into his head. "I'll let you top."

"What?" Harry's jaw fell as he slipped out of the blond's embrace and stared at him in astonishment.

Registering what he had just said, Draco blushed brightly and bit his lip, flustered. "I didn't mean to say that, I really didn't, I swear…"

Before Harry could reply, Sirius appeared in the doorway that led into the kitchen. "Draco, do you eat spaghetti –" he broke off and spoke over his shoulder "– what's it called again?"

"Spaghetti marinara," came the reply from the kitchen. "And I thought you were so sophisticated…"

"I'll make you regret that," Sirius growled back, his smirk and tone of voice giving an implicit meaning that Harry and Draco would rather not have to think about. After all, it was one of their teachers on the receiving end. Fortunately, Sirius quickly snapped his attention back to them and asked in a somewhat distracted voice: "So, is spaghetti marinara okay with you two?"

"Fine with me," Harry answered, trying to keep his words clear of the effects of the past few minutes.

"That sounds great," Draco added, having to make a similar effort.

As soon as Sirius went back into the kitchen, an uncomfortable silence descended, neither Harry nor Draco knowing quite how to follow Draco's slip of the tongue. As such, when Deb returned from the bathroom, she found them sitting about three feet apart on the same couch, looking distinctly awkward.

The half-hour between then and dinner being ready could have been unnervingly silent if not for two things. Firstly, Deb had the good sense to switch on the TV, thus proving that even such banality as _Takeshi's Castles_ is better than a pure sonic void. Secondly, Draco disappeared for about five minutes after realising that he had yet to call his mother.

Between phone calls and Japanese game shows, they managed to pass the time without having to say even a word to each other. And soon they were being called into the kitchen, and their senses assaulted by dinner. Harry and Deb could tell within one bite that Sirius had had little if anything to do with its preparation; he was like a gremlin in the kitchen. This ambrosia had to be Lupin's doing.

The two adults must have noticed the lack of conversation or even eye contact at the table, as none of the three teenagers actually spoke other than to request the passing of pepper, bread rolls, and other such items, and to awkwardly thank Lupin for the meal. Maybe, had they known about Harry and Draco's relationship, this would have seemed stranger than it did. But given their ignorance of that salient fact, the protracted silence could easily be attributed to a trying day.

After dinner, there was still no real communication going on, so the washing up was abandoned, and Sirius gave up on trying to defuse the tangible tension. "I think I'd better take you three home. Draco, I hope you don't live too far away; I'm running out of gas in the car."

----

Several hours later, Harry was getting close to his reward. Abstinence and patience were forgotten as he lay at last with Draco enfolded in his arms, skin against skin raising the heat in the room to the level of fever.

"Remember what you said you'd give me as a reward?" Harry murmured as the blond moved to his neck, kissing and biting, leaving tiny pink marks every few centimetres.

"Mm-hm," Draco responded, slowly stopping and lifting himself to look into Harry's eyes. "I guess it's time to let you have it."

His voice sent a rush of heat through Harry's entire body, and he flipped them both over, taking the blond's place as the dominant. "Damn right." But instead of taking what he had so recently been promised, he echoed Draco's movements by shifting to leave a few marks of his own, eliciting sighs and moans from the other boy. With one hand placed beside Draco's body, propping himself up, his other hand slid lower, teasing down Draco's chest, brushing over his flat stomach, and at last touching him.

Then there were slender fingers racing over his own skin, taking hold of him, moving oh-so-slightly, and the sensation was driving him crazy, building and building, until he could hardly believe that they had been prepared to put this off.

The heat was rising, not the only thing making him light headed, and suddenly, stars exploded across his vision, and the single most unbelievable feeling ever was taking over every atom of his being –

"OH GOD!"

Harry opened his eyes as the cry left his lips, and saw pure darkness. What? He sat up, unexpectedly finding himself alone, and in place of soft lighting, the only thing to break the darkness was a jumble of red lines beside him. He squinted, and the lines arranged themselves: 03.27. It was a clock.

The heat was draining from his limbs now, but the more obvious, tangible evidence remained, proving that he had indeed felt that amazing, all-consuming sensation. But the clock, the dark, and the otherwise empty bed proved the rest: it was a dream.

_"I'll let you top."_ After all they had said about taking things slowly, how had those words had such an effect on him?

----

_A/N: For this ending, my thanks go to all the people on the Misheard Lyrics Archive who misheard Bryan Adams' Summer of '69. They inspired me. In closing, I want to say thanks also to all the people who continue to believe in this story. I really appreciate it. If you have any ideas for what you want to see happening in this fic, suggestions are very welcome._

_CSF_


	20. Glasnost

**Chapter 20**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N: I was dynamic! This is a super-fast update by my standards. I now have a direction and future plans for this story, which helps. I'm really sorry for not doing individual review replies; just know that I love you all very much for reviewing! I'll try and get back to you all next time._

_----_

On Monday morning, Harry was in a distinctly bad mood. After his sudden awakening at such a stupidly early hour, and subsequent need to secretly change half his bed linen, he had received far less sleep than he would have liked. When he had gone back to bed, some time after four o' clock, it had taken him a long time to fall asleep again, as he feared a recurrence of his dream.

Funnily enough, it had had more impact on him than most nightmares he had experienced, despite its decidedly enjoyable nature. He and Draco had agreed to wait, and he had been happy with that decision. He had been so sure that they weren't ready, but now his inane subconscious had raised questions about just how certain he really was.

"You look pissed off," Deb commented calmly, sliding into the chair on the opposite side of the kitchen table to where Harry was sitting, and checking that Lily was out of earshot. "Did you and the Dragon have a fight yesterday?"

He made a noncommittal sound and kept eating his porridge.

Picking up a piece of toast, Deb narrowed her eyes at him. "Look, you were mad at me yesterday, and after you found me I didn't really give you a chance to vent, so you were probably still angry afterwards. I don't want to cause any trouble between the two of you." She was about to take a bite of her toast when she paused sheepishly and added: "Well, at least not again."

Harry sighed. "Something did happen, but it wasn't because of you. Okay?"

"Okay." Evidently remembering their new agreement, she left it at that and started to eat her breakfast.

----

When he reached his homeroom that morning, Harry was expecting things to be thoroughly awkward, and he wasn't disappointed. Ron and Mione were huddled over an English Lit assignment when he walked in, and while they didn't ignore him or anything like that, things had definitely changed. And if he wanted his life to be close to ordinary again, he was going to have to talk to them.

As he sat down at his usual desk, Mione looked up and caught his eye. She muttered something to Ron and he nodded. After rolling up the large piece of paper they had been working on, she twisted a chair round and sat down, facing Harry. "Hey."

"Hey," he said softly as Ron down on Mione's left.

"Look, I'm sorry," she said at last, not breaking eye contact. "We both acted like jerks these last few weeks. We talked about it this weekend, and neither of us want to lose you, or Dray, if you can forgive us."

Harry paused for a moment, unsure how to reply, but Ron cut into the silence after a few seconds. "If you're still mad, then just be mad at me. Mione only blanked the two of you because I wanted her to; she tried to talk me into apologising earlier. I'm sorry; it's my fault."

Mione turned to look indignantly at him. "No it isn't. If I were a true friend, I would have tried harder to get you to fix this!"

"Guys!" Harry held up both hands in a T-shape. "Time out, okay? I don't care whose fault it is. You both did it, but you've both apologised, so I'm fine with it, so long as you apologise to Dray as well." Suddenly he could sense someone behind him, and turned. "Speak of the devil. Now's your chance."

"Chance for what?" Draco pulled up another chair and sat down next to him.

"We're sorry," Mione said promptly. "Ron and I have been incredibly stupid in the last few weeks, and we want to apologise."

Draco turned to Ron with one eyebrow raised. "Is that right?"

Ron nodded. "Yeah. I'm sorry I was so insulting about it. If you guys want to… be together, it shouldn't bother us."

"What brought this on?" Draco still looked intrigued, but as he spoke, the answer dawned. "Oh yeah, you saw your sister with Deb on Friday, didn't you?"

Ron turned slightly green. "Don't remind me. I mean don't get me wrong, I can take you two being an item, but I'd rather not see anything actually happening, right? Now think about the fact that Ginny's my baby sister, so it's a whole lot worse."

"She's not such a baby any more," Harry corrected. "There's more going on with her and Deb than you know."

"Harry, please…"

Putting an arm round Ron's shoulders, Mione smiled. "I think he might be punishing you."

"You really do leave yourself open to it, you know," Harry told him, trying not to laugh.

Sadly for him, his fun was abruptly cut off by the bell ringing and the prompt arrival of McGonagall.

----

It wasn't until lunchtime that Harry had a chance to speak to Draco on his own, and he wasn't going to let the opportunity slip past.

The blond was putting his books into his locker when Harry tapped him on the shoulder, his face unusually serious. "Dray… we need to talk."

Draco's heart sank. "I'm really not going to like this, am I?"

After a second or two, Harry's bright jade eyes widened behind his glasses and he shook his head rapidly. "No! It's not that bad, I promise."

As they started walking down the corridor, heading for nowhere in particular, Draco shot him a sideways glance and asked under his breath, a touch nervously: "So you're not going to end it?"

"What? No way!" Harry ran his hand through his hair, looking (and feeling) slightly rattled. "I just… I just figured we needed to talk about what happened yesterday afternoon."

"Okay." Draco still looked worried, and was silent for a moment. "I guess we should find somewhere private." He glanced out of the floor-length windows which had now replaced the lockers that lined the corridor further back. "I would say outside, but it's raining."

"Never mind the rain," Harry said, morecalmly than he felt. "There's that covered bit down in the courtyard; we could go there."

They took a staircase down past the science labs and reached the area he had suggested. The covered walkway around the courtyard was lined with benches, and they sat down, carefully making sure they weren't too close together. Today it was debatable as to whether that was because of their need to keep their relationship secret, or on account of their current situation.

"The rain's pretty," Draco said finally, watching the droplets streaming from the edge of the cover under which they sat. When Harry didn't reply, he turned to face him with a small sigh. "Okay, I'll stop putting it off. You wanted to talk."

"Yeah." Harry looked up into his eyes and took a deep breath. "I need to know… honestly. When you said that yesterday, were you thinking about it?"

"It was the first thing that came into my mind. I don't know why. I know we said we'd wait, and that's what I still want to do."

"I know. Me too." Then Harry made a small noise of frustration, right hand diving through his hair again, as it often did when he was nervous. "It's just… I don't know why it got to me so much."

Draco frowned. "I didn't know it had…"

Harry gave a short laugh and shut his eyes, not trusting himself to say it while he could still see Draco's face. "Oh, believe me, it got to me. It got right to my subconscious at three in the morning."

When he opened his eyes, Draco's pale eyebrows were raised and his mouth was slightly open. "Did you…"

"Have a dream? About you? Yes."

"Jesus." Draco slumped back against the bench, swallowing hard. "Sorry."

"Don't apologise." Harry half-smiled, beating down the embarrassment that was threatening to make him into a tomato. "It was… fun."

He was slightly concerned when Draco hid his face behindone hand, as he now had no indication of what the blond was thinking. But after a long moment, Draco took his hand away, and Harry discovered that he was laughing.

"What's funny?"

Draco shook his head, his features relaxing into a smile. "Do you realise that we only got together five weeks ago, and we've spent probably the majority of that not speaking to each other because of those stupid pictures? It just seems a little weird that we're having this kind of problem. And it's even weirder that it feels like we've been together for years."

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Not sure of what his boyfriend was getting at, Harry was speaking quietly, staring down at the paving under his feet.

A hand gently touched his, twining their fingers together. "It's a good thing. Totally," Draco answered softly. "I'm not one for rushing into things, but… I guess you make me act different to usual. And if it's going to make us feel awkward or miserable, maybe holding off completely isn't the answer."

Harry's head shot up in surprise. "You mean…"

With the hand that wasn't holding Harry's, Draco gestured a 'no', shaking his head. "Not exactly. Look… thinking about how we got here in the first place, we might as well start being more open about this. I don't mean we should sleep together just yet, since that doesn't seem to be on the current wish-list for either one of us. I just mean that there's more to life than kissing. Right?"

Harry squeezed his hand, smiling. "Right. I can't promise that I won't dream about you again, though."

Draco smiled back at him. "I won't complain about that. I may even try encouraging my brain to dream about you too."

Suddenly, a door slammed on the other side of the courtyard, and they dropped each other's hands as three eighth-grade girls ran giggling down the path and out onto the sports field, dancing around in the heavy rain.

"We should go inside," Draco said at length, standing and offering a hand to help Harry to his feet. He didn't need it – they both knew that, but it was an excuse. And there weren't enough of them.

----

_A/N: The next update hopefully won't be too far away. Thank you all for reading; please review._

_Note: If you like non-magic, if you like long stories, if you like Sirius/Remus… send me a message with 'DoI' in it to find out more about the upcoming fic, Degrees Of Involvement!_


	21. Kippers in the Closet

**Chapter 21**

_Disclaimer: The main characters belong to JK Rowling (at least, their names do), but the setting, plot and some other characters are mine._

_A/N: I broke my writer's block! This is the product. I hope it makes up for the hideously long wait (I'm sorry!). If not, at least the next chapter is in progress; I started it during my free period at school today._

_----_

There were no dreams on Monday night. But on Tuesday, the result of the post-dream agreement remained hanging in the air.

Last period before lunch was Geography – Lupin's lesson. Harry still found it odd listening to a teacher talk about racial demography, then looking up and abruptly remembering that he had been eating said teacher's cooking two days before, and listening to more interesting but infinitely more disturbing words in that very same voice.

Within fifteen minutes, he had taken to staring at his notes as if absorbed, and was writing more down than he had in any Geography lesson since starting at Minster. By the time the lesson was halfway through, the page was even colour-coded.

As Lupin turned to write a word on the board, Harry felt a sudden nudge against his knee, and looked up to his left to see Draco watching him.

"Are you okay?" the blond mouthed.

Harry nodded, smiling reassuringly. He could explain later.

When the bell rang at the end of the lesson, Lupin held up a hand to stop the class leaving. "Before you all go… come prepared for a surprise tomorrow." He said no more, returning to his desk, picking up his pile of folders, and following the first few students out of the room.

Within seconds, most of the class had cleared out, leaving only a few students behind. Mione excused herself and Ron with a brief 'we'll be in the cafeteria' before taking her boyfriend's hand and heading out into the corridor, leaving only Harry and Draco in the classroom.

Draco dropped his diary and textbook into his bag, swung the bag onto the table, folded his arms, and looked steadily at Harry. "Are you _really _okay? You were concentrating far more than could be considered normal."

With a shrug, Harry picked up his own bag and stood up, starting for the door. "Yeah, it's just a bit weird, you know? What with Lupin and Sirius being…"

"Thought that was it." Draco stood and walked after him. "Feels odd knowing things like that about teachers, doesn't it?"

"Totally." Harry was within a few feet of the door when he said this, and was suddenly cut off as he was unexpectedly seized from behind and hauled backwards. By the time he mustered coherent speech again, it was dark, thanks to the door that had just slammed behind a sweetly smiling Draco. "Um… Dray… what are we doing in the storage closet?"

"Use your imagination," came the murmured reply, the blond's growing smile faintly illuminated by the thin rays of light filtering in around the doorframe.

Scything through the antique scent of the shelves of books pressed against his back, Harry caught a delicate hint of aftershave, and felt his pulse speed up. His stomach suddenly felt lighter, and the air in his lungs felt cold as Draco leaned closer, hands braced on either side of Harry's body. His imagination was working overtime now, until the lightest touch of Draco's breath on his lips made him almost dive forward, and the reaction confirmed that his mind had indeed been working in very much the right direction.

Draco hadn't even hoped for the fervour he encountered in that kiss; he had genuinely not realised that his flippant comment two days earlier had had quite this effect on the brunette he currently had pinned against the shelving. Not that he was complaining.

At length, he pulled away and ran his tongue slowly over his bottom lip. "Wow. You're feisty today."

Harry shrugged one shoulder, his breath coming slightly – imperceptibly – faster than usual. "You're the one who dragged us in here." He fought off the urge to move forward, and stayed leaning casually where he was.

"Indeed I did. Don't tell me you're bored… rather be asleep?"

Raising an eyebrow, Harry managed not to blush. "You're never going to let me forget that, are you?"

Draco grinned. "Probably not." And he moved closer again, lifting a hand to brush Harry's hair out of his eyes. "Take your glasses off."

Without question, Harry slipped them off, folded them, and placed them carefully on one of the shelves. No sooner had his hand returned to his side than Draco pounced, arms leaving their braced position to wrap around Harry's waist as he resumed their previous kiss.

Harry's hands settled in the small of Draco's back, keeping them close together. Slowly, he let one hand slip under the soft material of the blond's sweater, brushing gently over his skin. The contact of the hands on his own back drew him even closer, until the prospects of his dream looked more appealing than ever.

Feeling, rather than hearing, the soft sounds Harry was making, Draco slid his right hand higher, running one finger teasingly along the brunette's neck, eliciting a shiver, before tangling his fingers carefully into Harry's dark hair.

Breaking away for air, Harry's hurried breaths turned into a gasp as he felt Draco's lips trail along his jaw and down his neck, and was surprised by a gentle bite that was sure to leave a mark. At the same time, the hand that was not resting under Draco's sweater slipped lower, almost into the blond's back pocket.

That was when the door opened.

Blinded momentarily by the sudden burst of light, Harry let go of Draco and scrabbled along the shelf in search of his glasses. When he found them and hurriedly put them on, the opener of the door had disappeared, and Draco was tentatively stepping out into the classroom.

"Thank _god_ I didn't come in five minutes from now." The voice was familiar, and Harry's suspicion was confirmed as he emerged after Draco.

"Hi, Mr Lupin." To say that Draco's tone was nervous would be something of an understatement. "We were, ah, looking for something?"

Lupin waved a hand. "There's no point making it up, Draco. I should probably learn to knock when I'm feeling a little suspicious about what's going on behind the door." He gestured to their bags, unceremoniously dropped on the floor. "Please find an alternative venue in the future, though."

"We will, sir," Harry said quickly, finding his voice. "Does this mean… you won't tell anyone?"

"Well, I feel your godfather should know – do you have any idea how much he's been worrying about whether you really accept us or not? – but no, I won't be going to the principal, or anything like that."

Exhaling slowly, Harry raised his eyes to the ceiling for a moment in silent thanks.

"Thank you, sir." Draco was wearing his best 'formal occasions only' smile, and as he spoke, took a firm grip on Harry's elbow with one hand, their bags with the other, and backed out of the room.

Once they were in the corridor, and the door had shut behind them, he at least had the good grace to offer Harry a sheepish smile. "Oops."

----

_A/N: Verdicts on the slash, please! Or any review is good. I need to practise my slash-writing for the novel I'm doing for National Novel Writing Month in November. _

_Next chapter is on its way._


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